Beast Boy's Last Laugh
by Alexpv22
Summary: (Disclaimer: This story is inspired by a segment from the animated movie Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. I do not own IT, Batman or the Titans characters. They are all under the full ownership of DC Comics, Warner Animation and Cartoon Network; please...don't sue me.) (Full story summary inside)
1. Prologue: Debriefing at the GCPD

Prologue

Debriefing at the GCPD

(Story Summary: While patrolling the city with the team, one night; Beast Boy is suddenly assaulted in an alley and goes missing for several months. After coming to dead end after dead end in their search, the Teen Titans receive assistance from an unlikely source; Batman and Batgirl. What will these heroes discover in their search to find the young changeling?)

It was a bleak and rainy night over at Gotham City; car horns were blaring, people were ranting loudly while stuck in traffic and people did their best to keep themselves from getting too wet. Now, one might think that for a place like this; such weather conditions would be seen as normal. But on this particular night, the rain carried with it the grim chill of death and sadness in the air.

Down below in the streets, a familiar blue and white car was seen driving by. Inside was a group of young heroes known by many worldwide as the Teen Titans. On any other day, these young teens would be playfully laughing or ribbing one another during the drive; after a mission was successfully completed. But today, there was something missing...or rather, _someone!_

In the back seat of the car; Raven, the team's resident empathy/sorceress, turned to her right at an empty space beside her. She looked at this space with a sullen look upon her face and sighed deeply. Normally, a certain green jokester would occupy this space; playfully antagonizing everyone around him with cheesy jokes and puns.

But on this night, everything was deathly quiet and not one of the Titans enjoyed it; not even Raven (much to her own surprise.) Finally, after what felt like ages of silence; Starfire suddenly erupted into a soft fit of tears. "Oh, Robin...must we go and speak about what happened" she cried, "I cannot bear to think about how we lost...him."

As the young Tamaranean continued to weep, Raven wrapped her cloak lightly around her; hoping she would find comfort in the gesture. "We're _all_ hurtin', Star" Cyborg sighed glumly, "but...it's all part of the job; we have to inform the authorities on everything that went down." While she knew her friend spoke the truth, it didn't make Star feel any less unhappy.

"I just...I just miss him so much" she murmured with a sniffle, "this is one of the rare moments where I would happily welcome one of his ill-thought out jests." Upon hearing these words, Raven suddenly found herself caught in a fierce mental quandary. For most of her life, she would try to keep herself from feeling any kind of emotion that would attempt to overwhelm her; mostly to protect others from being accidentally hurt by her powers.

But in _this_ case, she could not help but allow a few small tears to trickle down her pale grey cheek. Though she would never openly admit it, Raven was in full agreement with Starfire. In this moment; she would give up anything, even her own demonic powers or mental/emotional freedom, just to hear one last joke from a certain someone...but it never came.

"I know we're all hurting right now, Titans" Robin sighed, "but we _have_ to do this, like Cyborg said." As much as it pained them to do so, the other three Titans nodded slightly in agreement with their leader. With that done, the T-Car continued on its drive until they arrived at their destination; the GCPD Building.

As Robin stared up at the police station, he suddenly felt a painful tug at his heart. Though it was his duty to report to Commissioner Gordon about what happened on their mission, it didn't make the former Boy Wonder feel any less distressed. _"Shake it off, Richard...just shake it off"_ he said mentally while wiggling his head side-to-side, _"the sooner you do this...the sooner you can grieve with the others."_

(scene change: the GCPD Interview Room)

The moment they entered the room, the Titans were greeted by James Gordon; commissioner for the Gotham Police. At the same time, they (especially Robin) were surprised to discover another figure waiting to see their arrival. Standing before them was none other than the Dark Knight himself and Robin's former mentor, Batman.

Under other circumstances, the team would be both excited...yet nervous in the presence of such a legendary hero; especially one particular member of their team. But because of his obvious absence, they were far too emotionally distressed to care. So, each of them greeted the Caped Crusader with a simple yet stoic "hello" or a "greetings, Batman" (in Starfire's case.)

"Thank you all for coming, kids" murmured Gordon, "please...have a seat." With weary sighs aplenty, the team took their seats into some empty chairs. Then, Batman asked for Robin to come sit at the desk with the Commissioner; which he did without hesitation.

"I know you and your friends are still hurting, Robin" he said with a deep sigh, "but...you know how it is with police protocol." After sharing a brief yet soft chuckle at Batman's attempt at a joke, Robin took a moment to steady himself. Meanwhile, Jim took out a small recording device and placed it upon the table; after pressing the play button.

"This is also for procedure's sake" he murmured, "now...as best as you can, tell us how it all went down; especially what happened to Beast Boy." The moment his name was mentioned, each of the Titans felt a different set of emotions surge through them. Robin felt a tremendous wave of shame rush through him like a raging river.

Cyborg felt a sensation of regret clutch at his still human heart, Starfire struggled desperately with trying not to cry and Raven felt as though her insides would burst out from all the rage she was keeping bottled up inside. Then, after breathing deeply for almost ten minutes; Robin was ready to speak. "It started out as just a simple patrol mission through Jump City, at first" he murmured, "of course...that was before our friend was taken from us."

Upon saying this, Batman gasped when he saw a pair of tear streaks trickle down from Robin's mask and down his cheeks. "Why...Why Quinn" he growled, "WHY DID YOU HAVE TO TAKE GAR AWAY FROM US!?" Soon after shouting this; the former Boy Wonder, against every bit of restraint he had, slammed his fists upon the table.

No one dared to speak a word, after this for almost a minute due to their collective shock from Robin's behavior. Then, Commissioner Gordon lightly patted Robin's gloved hand with his own and smiled at him softly. "I know you're hurting, my boy; believe me...I understand what it's like to suffer from _his _actions" he muttered, "but talking things out is the first step towards recovering from loss."

In his heart, Robin knew Gordon spoke the truth...but it didn't make it any easier to deal with his pain. Still, he knew that he had to talk about what happened; no matter what. "Why not start at the beginning, everyone" Batman suggested, "tell us about the patrol first."

With a heavy heart, Robin volunteered to go first.

(AN: Man...things are feeling rather heavy here, aren't they? But what exactly happened to the team, why are they so down and...what happened with Beast Boy? Tune in next time, to find out.)


	2. Chapter One: Night Patrol

Night Patrol

For what felt like ages, Robin found himself struggling mentally; unsure of whether or not he should speak of past events. But then, he felt the warm touch of Starfire's hand upon his shoulder; which caused him to slightly snap out of his distressed state. He took a quick glance at her and saw a look of sorrow upon her face.

But upon looking deeper into her eyes, Robin knew she was silently urging him to speak. With a weary sigh, he asked Commissioner Gordon to give him some water; which he happily obliged. After downing the beverage, seconds later; the Boy Wonder was finally ready to speak.

"It started out as a quiet afternoon" he began, "one of many quiet afternoons that seemed to have lasted for almost a month." From here, he spoke of how crime had been rather dead in the city as of late; which left things rather peaceful in Jump City. "There was once a time where I would get _incredibly_ restless and practically beg for anything to happen" Robin said with a light chuckle, "I'd even settle for Control Freak raiding a comic convention like he did three months ago."

Much to the Titans' surprise, this little story caused the often stoic Batman to lightly chuckle with amusement. "Guess I taught you well in being vigilant, Dick" the Dark Knight murmured, "perhaps...a little too well?" After a quick chuckle, Gordon brought everyone's attention back to the story and urged Robin to continue.

"Well; even though things were quiet, we still had to be on alert" Raven interjected suddenly, "super-villain activity may have been dead...but even the petty criminals needed attending to." At this point, Commissioner Gordon commended the team's dedication. At the same time, however; he felt that such crimes were best left for the police to deal with.

"That is true, Sir" Starfire stated, "but I imagine that they cannot be available to thwart every purse-snatching or robbery, correct?" There was a light murmur of agreement on both sides and then, the debriefing continued. But as Cyborg approached the seat, Batman could sense that the half-robot teen was looking rather tense.

His fists were clenched tight, his teeth grinding and upon closer inspection, Batman could see that the poor kid was moments away from crying. "I know this must be hard for you...considering later circumstances" he murmured, "but don't hold back on my account; if you want to, you may cry." With that said, the Titans suddenly broke out into a light fit of sobs; even Raven found it difficult to remain stable.

Then, after a minute or two of crying; everyone was stable enough to continue. "Thanks for that, y'all" Cyborg sighed, "you don't know how long I was holding all that in." After that, he cleared his throat and began to recount the moments of the night patrol.

(Flashback)

It was a mucky summer evening in Jump City, the perfect conditions to make patrolling the city incredibly uncomfortable; especially for a certain green changeling. While in the form of a peregrine falcon; he was up in the air, scouring the streets for any signs of danger. But after almost two hours of looking into every alley and searching every rooftop, everything seemed a-okay.

With a deep sigh; Beast Boy perched atop a building, shapeshifted back into his human self and took a moment to stretch out his limbs a little. "Boy, it feels like I've been flappin' for days" sighed Beast Boy, "on the plus side...everything seems all clear in the city tonight." Upon thinking this, he then realized that it would be wise to have one final look around.

Once more, Beast Boy assumed his falcon form and took off into the air. Then, from his (literal) birds-eye view; he kept watch for any sign of minor or major criminal activity. He flew over the office district and found nothing, went over suburbs and saw no crooks on the streets and they pier area where the amusement park stood was just as dead.

_"Yup, everything's all clear; just like I thought" _he thought to himself, _"better ring up the rest of the team and tell them the good word."_ With that in mind, Beast Boy quickly perched himself atop another building, changed back into human form and brought out his communicator. Mere seconds later, Robin's face appeared on the small screen and he looked to be riding on his R Cycle; possibly in the middle of his own patrol.

"Hey, dude; sorry if I caught ya at a bad time" Beast Boy chuckled, "but I've combed over my end of the city four times over and found no signs of trouble." Robin smiled slightly and echoed the same results from his own search. "Looks like we'll be getting a quiet night, for once" he chuckled, "head back to the tower as soon as you can."

After that command, Beast Boy gave his friend/leader a casual salute and shut off his communicator.

(Flash Forward)

Back in the present; at this point in his story, Batman could sense the despair and frustration welling up in his former protégé. The rest of the Titans were also looking rather distressed; Cyborg was slamming his fist lightly against a wall, Starfire was on the verge of an emotional breakdown and Gordon swore he might've seen fangs forming in Raven's teeth. After a while, Batman became bold enough to ask what happened to their friend next.

"At the time, we didn't know what happened" Cyborg mumbled, "but after the mission was 'successful' and we got B home; he told us everything." From here, the half-robot teen mentioned that Beast Boy's senses caught the sounds of someone in distress down in the city. "B said he flew down and saw what looked like a purse-snatching in progress" he explained, "not a big crime, true...but nothing too hard for him to handle."

(Flashback to the overhead of Jump City)

After touching base with Robin, Beast Boy assumed his falcon form and was making his way back towards the Titans Tower. Then, just as he was about to fly over the mainland; his extra-sharp senses picked up a sound. It was faint due to the distance but Beast Boy swore it sounded like someone screaming in distress.

_"Guess I sort of jinxed myself in saying tonight will be quiet" _he thought mentally while rolling his eyes, _"hopefully this will be a quick job."_ With that, he dive-bombed towards the city and quickly found the source of the screaming. Down below in an alleyway, Beast Boy caught sight of a woman being harassed by a group of thugs.

"Help, someone help me" cried the woman, "they're trying to take my purse!" Upon hearing this, Beast Boy doubled his diving speed and brought out his talons; eager for a fight. Meanwhile; down below, the thugs began to surround the young lady.

"C'mon, babe" one of them chuckled, "all we want is a small handout to help us get by and that big purse of yours looks like it's full to burstin' with moolah." As the young lady started backing up towards the wall, she found herself trembling slightly with fear. Not only did the thugs outnumber her but they also had a clear strength and size advantage over her.

Regardless, she wasn't willing to go down without putting up a decent fight first. So, she took hold of her purse's strap and began to swing it around like a flail. At first, the thugs just watched her with wide-eyed looks of confusion on their faces.

Then, one of them suddenly burst out laughing; before mocking the woman's meager attempt at self-defense. "Is this really all you've got, lady" the man chuckled, "this will make takin' your purse from ya even easier." With that said; he rushed forward and made an attempt to grab the purse, while it was spinning around.

But the moment he was in range, the woman's purse stuck the thug hard on the left side of his face; causing him to stumble backwards slightly. "Goddammit, that hurt" he winced painfully, "I didn't realize the purse was _that_ heavy." Upon hearing this, the leader of the thugs suddenly started laughing with glee.

"Guess we were right on the purse bein' loaded, boys" he declared, "grab it!" With that command, the thugs rushed in and tried to overpower the woman; while also making grabs for her purse. Then, all of a sudden; the skies echoed loudly with the shrill screeches of a bird.

Before anyone could react, the leader suddenly felt something swoop down and slice at the top of his head; cutting into his scalp. "What the hell was that, boss" one of the other thugs asked, "it sounded like...a hawk or a falcon." The lead thug swiped his hand over his head and saw faint traces of blood upon his palm.

"It can't be, you moron" he grumbled with a mild hiss, "falcons or hawks ain't native to Gotham...at least, not in the city." While there was some truth in their leader's words, the other thugs still believed such a creature attacked him. "Well, if it ain't either of those...what attacked you" another thug inquired, "can't be no gull or pigeon that did _that_ to your head."

With that comment, the thugs suddenly found themselves getting into a rather heated argument; which seemed more important than taking the lady's purse. Meanwhile, on a steel stairway beside one of the buildings; a familiar green falcon watched the scene with a smile upon his beak.

_"Good, they're distracted"_ he thought, _"now's the time to finish the job and call it a night."_ With that thought in mind; the falcon leapt off the steps, shifted form in mid-air and landed safely behind a collection of cans and trash bags. At the same time, this landing caused a mild rattling noise; which brought the thugs' argument to an immediate halt.

"Hey, you guys hear that" one of the thugs asked, "it sounded like it came from the back." The leader let out a loud "harrumph" and said it was probably a cat scurrying around the trash for scraps. As if on cue, everyone suddenly heard a loud hissing noise coming from behind the trash pile but it didn't sound like a cat's hiss.

"Ya think it could be one of them super rats they talked about on the news, fellas" a larger thug murmured fearfully with a nervous gulp, "may be they's as big as all of _us._" The leader scoffed at his cohort's words and told him not to believe all that nonsense they talk about on TV. "Look...if it makes you dummies feel better; I'll go snatch the cat myself and _then_, we'll make off with this lady's purse" he instructed, "is it a deal?"

With that said, the leader marched his way over towards the pile and began fishing around for the supposed cat. In time, he found his prize and held it up for all to see. But when he saw the looks of worry on his colleagues' faces, the leader became rather confused.

"What are you meatheads looking so scared for" he grumbled with annoyance, "it's just a dumb cat, nothing to be scared..." Just as he was ready to finish his sentence; the thug took a look at his prize and discovered he wasn't, in fact holding a cat. Instead, he came face to face with a rather angry green skunk.

The creature growled softly while dangling in the leader's grip and glared angrily at him. Then, it turned itself slightly; exposing its backside towards the group. Upon seeing this, the woman could sense what was about to happen and quickly clamped her hands over her nose and mouth.

Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for the group of thugs. As the skunk's face began to show signs of straining, one of them _finally_ understood what was about to happen and prepared to tell the others. But as the thug opened his mouth to speak, the green skunk finally let loose and sprayed its rancid stench upon each of their faces.

To make matters worse, not only were they breathing in the acrid aroma; some of the liquid found its way into some of their mouths. "OH...DEAR GOD, THAT STINKS" the leader cried, "I THINK I FELT SOME OF THE JUICE GO IN MY EYES!" As he and his group began coughing up in disgust, the leader released his grip on the skunk's tail and dropped him.

Not long after that, it shifted into the familiar form of Beast Boy; who smiled proudly at his handiwork. "C'mon, fellas; do I really smell _that _bad" he asked sarcastically, "I just took a bath three days ago." The thugs didn't respond to his words, for they were too busy hacking and coughing from the stench the Titan created.

"Consider that lil' spray payback for hassling an innocent lady" Beast Boy decreed, "which reminds me...I've yet to bust you all for that." Not long after saying this, the green Titan shifted into a gorilla form and unleashed a flurry of mighty blows; knocking out every one of them.

After the battle, Beast Boy flexed his arms a bit; both to stretch out the strain in his muscles...and to show off a bit to the lady. Finally, he changed back to normal and approached the woman; hoping she was okay. "Sorry if I scared you a little earlier, Miss" Beast Boy chuckled sheepishly, "I can't exactly communicate, when I'm in animal form."

The woman smiled slightly at him and assured the young Titan everything was fine. "I've hiked in the woods for years and come across one or...two skunks, at times" she stated, "after the second encounter; I know better than to plug up my nose, whenever they're about to let loose." After that, she bowed her head slightly and thanked Beast Boy for coming to her rescue.

Then, as she tried to walk her way out of the alley; the woman suddenly started staggering slightly. "Oh, dear...I think that whole experience left me rather shaken" she murmured, "would you be a dear and help me down to the bus stop?" On the inside, the poor green bean was practically crying with impatience.

All he wanted was to end his little "mission," go home, crash in his bunk bed and chill until the next morning. But on the outside, he did his best to appear professional and heroic; before offering the woman a smile. "Sure thing, Ma'am" he murmured, "I'd be happy to help." Unbeknownst to the green Titan, however; this response caused a wicked grin to form on the woman's face.

Then, just as Beast Boy took her by her hand; his body suddenly surged with what felt like 300 volts of electricity. After six seconds, the woman finally let go of him and watched as the poor lad fell to the ground with a groan. Poor Beast Boy could only watch helplessly, as the supposedly "defenseless" woman began to remove her coat; revealing a red and black jester outfit underneath.

Not long after that, Beast Boy could hear muffled footsteps approaching from behind. With a soft yet painful groan, he turned onto his side to see who was coming towards him. For a brief moment, Beast Boy thought it might be one of the other Titans coming to help him.

What he found instead caused the poor green teen to almost choke himself from letting out a startled gasp. Standing over him, dressed in his trademark purple suit, green undershirt, light-purple gloves, wing-tipped shoes and squirting flower was none other than the Clown Prince of Crime himself; The Joker. He stared down at the green child lying flat on the ground, gave him a light kick in the side and chuckled maliciously.

"Heh! You'd think that somebody who prides himself as a prankster would've been wise to these kind of tricks" he said smugly, "guess he really is as dumb as people say." After that, he turned towards the group of thugs and snapped his fingers. "Shake it off, boys; my Joker gas smells much worse than his stench" Joker chortled, "we've gotta get this young man some help."

Once the group had recovered well enough, they smiled wickedly to one another and began helping their boss in loading Beast Boy into their car. "Gee...I dunno, Puddin'" the jester murmured, "ain't ya worried he'll wake up durin' the ride back home?" Upon hearing the "P" word nickname, Joker was libel to clock her across the face in annoyance. But instead, he patted her lightly atop her jester hat and kissed her cheek.

"Don't you worry, Harley" he assured, "with the amount of juice you used on him from my buzzer, he'll be out for hours." With that said, they chucked Beast Boy over the side of the car and into the backseat. Then, once everyone was loaded up; Joker revved up the engine and made a beeline out of town.

"Phase One of my plan is complete, everyone" he said with a gleeful chuckle, "now...we'll begin Phase Two; once we get back home." The moment this was mentioned, the lead thug nervously asked if they should be concerned about the other Titans; once they learned Beast Boy hadn't come home yet. "Oh, don't you worry about that" Joker assured, "I'm _counting_ on those brats to trail us; along with a certain someone we all know and hate."

It didn't take long for everyone to realize just who their boss was referring to. That being said, it didn't make them feel any less nervous. Somehow, Joker could sense everyone's uneasiness and told them not to worry. "As I said, I'm actually counting on all of them to come and look for us" he chortled, "I don't want them to miss our big surprise!"

(Back to Reality)

Before continuing, Commissioner Gordon asked for the Titans to stop for a moment; so that he could process everything. "First of all, what would Joker be doing so far out of Gotham" he asked, "was what he did some kind of jab at you, Robin?" With a weary sigh, the former Boy Wonder said that the whole incident felt something akin to that.

"Truth be told, we've not had any encounters with any of the League's rogue's gallery or even Batman's before" Cyborg stated, "at least, that's how things started...until we learned that Slade used to give the League a great deal of trouble long before meeting _us._" Upon hearing this statement, Batman was inwardly kicking himself. He felt that he should've told Robin's team about Slade (or Deathstroke as _he_ knew him) ages ago. But it was too late to deal with _that_ now.

"As for what he was doing in Jump City; at the time, we didn't know" Raven murmured, "we just thought he wanted to try and wreck some other city...like what he once did in Metropolis." After that was said, Commissioner Gordon felt like he got what he wanted with that matter. "My second question is...why would he come after your friend" he asked hesitantly, "as you said; with the exception of Slade, none of Batman's criminals ever bothered anyone in Jump City before."

The moment this matter was presented, the Titans suddenly felt themselves slightly relapsing into "Grief Mode." It took all the mental discipline Raven had to help keep herself calm. But her face showed clear signs of severe distress the more she did so.

The other three Titans were no different either; Cyborg choked back several sobs, Starfire almost blasted the ceiling with her eye beams and Robin became so stressed, he almost crushed his arm rests. Finally, after a moment or two; Batman took a moment to step out of the room.

"I'll be right back, everyone" he muttered, "I'm gonna go get some hot chocolate; I have a feeling that at this point, we'll need something to help calm our nerves." Without a moment's pause, everyone nodded in reply to the caped crusader's offer and thanked him for it. But as Batman made his way down the hall, he found himself passing a collection of wanted posters hanging on the wall.

When he caught sight of Joker's, he suddenly felt his blood boiling like a pit of molten lava. For a while, he just stood in place; glaring and growling at the clown's grinning face. Then, against his better judgment; he pulled out a batarang and stabbed its point straight through the forehead.

After that, Batman went back on his way to retrieve the cocoa with Jim that everyone so desperately needed; including him.

(First AN: Wow, things are really starting to get tense. But what do you think happened, after BB was knocked out? Where are Joker and Co. taking him and how will the rest of the Titans...or even Batman fit into his plans?

Find out next time on Beast Boy's Last Laugh)

(Second AN: Some of you might think BB was stupid to fall into the trap so easily. But let me offer these two things as a rebuttal.

With the exception of Robin, none of the Titans ever tangled with someone like Joker. Thus, they couldn't have known about his tricks; including the electric joy buzzer.

2\. Being a young hero and a bit of a seeker for glory and someone who wishes to prove himself a good solo hero, at times. BB always leaps at the chance to help someone in need.

I hope that explains things well enough for y'all.)

(Final AN: The "giant rat" comment one of the thugs made is a slight nod to the recent Joker movie. I'm aware that such an issue was something Gotham dealt with. But sometimes, the news talks about global and national issues.

Thus, it makes a little sense that Jump City would be talking about that matter on TV. Plus, with the kind of stuff that happens there; who knows if giant rats might be a thing that the citizens of Jump City would also deal with.)


	3. Chapter Two: Where's BB

"Where's BB?"

Sometime later, Batman returned with a service cart; one containing a K-Cup brewer and several cups filled with cocoa. As he handed each of them to everyone, the caped crusader saw that the Titans were on the verge of a breakdown. Commissioner Gordon did everything he could to help keep them calm but to no avail.

"I'm glad you're back" he sighed with relief upon seeing Batman re-enter the room, "we best continue the story before one of these kids falls apart on us." As if on cue, a water cooler in the hallway was suddenly enveloped in a strange black aura. Then, seconds later; it exploded, causing water to fly about everywhere.

Naturally, the officers within the "splash zone" were the first to be doused. Among them was Harvey Bullock, who already appeared on the verge of losing it due to work-related stress. "Hey, tell that damn witch in there to ease up on the hocus pocus" he shouted towards the briefing room, "she's lucky it was just water that hit us and not coffee."

Upon hearing this, Raven growled loudly and her eyes suddenly turned blood red; which caused the Titans to suddenly tense up with fear. Without hesitation, they immediately tried to calm her down...but she wouldn't listen. "Back off" she roared with a demonic voice, "I've been looking for an excuse to vent my anger, after everything that's happened!"

After that, she raised her arm from out of her cloak and was poised to summon a black tendril to attack the officer. But then, Robin made one last attempt to get through to her by saying something he _knew_ she would listen to. "We know you're angry, Rae" sighed the Boy Wonder, "but...is _this_ what he would've wanted to see you doing, hurting jerks like Bullock?"

As expected, the aforementioned officer overheard his comment and proceeded to let out some rather...obscene words at him and the team. But Robin didn't listen; he simply kept his focus on Raven, hoping that what he said would bring the empath back to her senses. For a moment or two, all was silent; as the two Titans suddenly fell into a very tense stare-down.

Eventually, the glow in Raven's eyes swiftly faded away; before tears suddenly started forming in them. Then, much to the surprise of her teammates, she threw herself into Robin's arms and sobbed loudly. "Why him" she asked in a muffled voice while crying into her friend's shoulder, "he did nothing to that clown, why did they have to take him from us?!"

Even without his detective skills, it didn't take long for Batman to realize who the "he" in Raven's sobs was. After everyone was given a drink, he took a seat and asked if the Titans would be able to continue. "You know...you don't have to keep talking; if ya don't want to, kids" murmured Comm. Gordon, "it's obvious that something must've happened to you on that night."

After Raven stopped crying, minutes later; she wiped the tears in her eyes and shook her head at the policeman. "No...No, we can do this" Raven murmured, "I'll be okay...somehow." After that, she took a sip of her cocoa and sighed deeply; feeling the warmth of the beverage flow through her.

After a while, she became calm enough to continue with the rest of the interview; as was the rest of her team. "Good...now, how did you learn that your friend was captured" questioned Gordon, "were there any traces of the attackers left behind or any clues in the area?" As much as it pained them to do so, the team shook their heads in sad unison; proclaiming that Beast Boy's captors were quite thorough in covering up their tracks.

"At first, I thought he was goin' downtown for a bite to eat; considering how long we were patrolling that night" Cyborg murmured, "boy...I was so stupid back then."

(Flashback to Titans Tower)

In a familiar "T" shaped structure on a lone island in the sea, four of the five Titans were seen in the common room; either pacing about or anxiously tapping their fingers and toes. It had been almost an hour since Beast Boy had contacted Robin and he had yet to return home. "What's keepin' grass stain so long" groaned Cyborg, "it's almost dinner time and I'm getting hungry!"

Upon hearing her friend/teammate's complaint, Raven ceased tapping her foot and glared at him from behind the book she was reading. "You're almost always hungry, Cy" she groaned, "so, what else is new?" Rather than make some sort of comeback, the half-robot teen simply shrugged and folded his arms bitterly.

"B's takin' his sweet time out there" he grumbled, "for all we know, he could be eating out without us!" This suggestion seemed to mildly distress Starfire, who proceeded to question why he wouldn't "sup" with all of _them?_ "Since it is my turn to cook tonight, I was anxious to introduce my new mustard infused Glorg with you all."

No sooner had she said this, Star grabbed for a nearby XXXL bottle of mustard and sprayed it into a bowl; one that seemed to contain a gelatinous substance filled with meat. This sight caused the team to shudder...but not so loudly that Starfire might hear them. _"Beast Boy might've had the right idea in eating out after all" _Raven thought,_ "still, he could've at least _called _and tell us he'd be late."_

At that moment, Raven's train of thought was suddenly disrupted by the familiar chimes of the Titans communicator ringtone. She reached for the table, swiped up her device and flipped it open; expecting/secretly hoping to find Beast Boy's face on the small screen. But much to her dismay, it was completely blank.

Confused and mildly irritated; Raven wondered if her communicator was glitching out, if someone had hacked into the transmission or if someone was pulling some sort of prank on her. As strange as it seemed, she was secretly hoping for the third idea to be true; seeing it as a sign that Beast Boy was safe. Instead, what she found was Robin typing away at _his _communicator.

"Any particular reason you're messing with that, Robin" she murmured in her classic monotone voice, "I was in the middle of reading." Now, Raven knew very well she was lying through her teeth in saying that. But she was never one to openly admit that she ever felt concerned, afraid or distressed about anything.

Yet, in spite of this white lie; Robin did not chastise her nor call her out on it. "I'm worried too" he said simply, "I know you won't admit it but...I'm hoping he's okay as well." No sooner having said this, the Boy Wonder explained he'd been trying to triangulate any signs of Beast Boy's communicator.

Unfortunately, after typing away for almost an hour and a half; his search came up empty. "This is getting weird, y'all" Cyborg muttered, "even if he _was_ eating out, B would still keep his communicator on and close by at all times." It was in that moment the team came to a unanimous decision; they'd go out, search all of Beast Boy's usual hang out spots and bring him home (if and when they found him.)

(Line Break)

For most of the night, the Titans scoured every corner of the city looking for Beast Boy. But before their search began, a sudden realization struck the four of them like a blow to the head. Upon their return from battling the Brotherhood of Evil, they noticed that the block where many of their favorite establishments have been shut down.

In its place, the block had now become the location of a new office complex of some kind. With this in mind, they wondered if there was any other place where Beast Boy could hang out at. "There's always the pizza place" Cyborg said matter-of-factly, "and besides, many of our favorite shops on that block just relocated somewhere else."

The team murmured softly in understanding, believing that there might be some hope of success for their search party. "Go to any and every place in the city Beast Boy might go to, team" Robin instructed, "if you find anything, give a call...Titans, GO!" With that command, the team dispersed and began combing every inch of the city; hoping to find Beast Boy at any cost.

Unfortunately, things did not go quite so easily for them; as time passed. There was a slight upside to the situation however; just as Cyborg had deduced, many of their former hangout spots _have_ relocated from the original block to another area of Jump City. Furthermore; these establishments were either run by the original owners or friends, family and/or former coworkers of theirs.

Whatever the case, these people knew the Titans very well; especially Beast Boy. Sadly, no one at any of these locations saw him come in that night. The Titans searched all of them; from the comic shop, the video store, the arcade, the pier (which was still up and running) even Beast Boy's favorite prank shop.

Yet in the end, the result was all the same; he wasn't there. The only place left was Beast Boy's patrol location, which was where Robin had chosen to go to. Upon regrouping with him, the Titans could see their leader pacing back and forth in the middle of an alley; his face contorted into a vicious scowl.

Upon seeing his friends/teammates approaching however, the expression on his mask-covered eyes softened slightly and he let out a long sigh. "Guys...I'm so glad you're all here" he said with great relief in his voice, "_please..._tell me that at least _one _of you has some good news!" The moment this was said, the other three Titans suddenly found themselves becoming very tense.

At first, they were more than willing to give him their report. But judging from his demeanor and earlier pacing, it was clear that _his_ search came up empty as well and he hated the idea of a failed mission; however big or small it was. Thus, they found it difficult to say anything to him.

Finally, after what felt like ages of awkward silence (which was more likely fifteen seconds worth of it;) Raven sighed and stepped forward. "Nothing" she blurted out, "we've searched _every_ known place Beast Boy would go...but it there's been zero sign of him, according to the employees and other staff. No sooner had she said this; Robin let out a frustrated growl, took out his staff and slammed a nearby trashcan with it.

Naturally, this display startled the team but at the moment; he was too frustrated to notice. When he suddenly realized what he was doing, seconds later; Robin shook himself out of his daze and apologized to the team. "So sorry about that, guys" he sighed, "it's just...I've combed every inch of this location and found nothing!"

When asked if he found any sign of Beast Boy's communicator; Robin, with a disgruntled groan, said that there was no sign of _that_ either. "Whatever happened here...whoever took him, one thing is certain" he murmured, "these guys know exactly how to hit us where it hurts." With that revelation, Robin commanded the team to continue the search; even going as far as have them do so beyond Jump City.

"Look...Robin, we know you're worried; we are too" Raven groaned, "but it's getting late, we're all tired and if we don't get any rest...our minds won't be strong enough to focus on looking for Beast Boy." Cyborg and Starfire cried out in agreement with their friend, while also adding that the four of them alone weren't enough to find their friend. "Let us go home and retire to bed" Starfire urged, "in the morning, we shall look for others to help in our search."

For a moment or so, Robin said nothing; despite the many thoughts furiously echoing in his head. Finally, with a reluctant sigh; he agreed with their request and decided to call it a night. "Tomorrow morning, 5 AM; we wake up and continue the search" he ordered, "in the meantime...when we get home, I've got some calls to make."

(Back to Reality)

As our story cuts back to the present, we see Robin staring into his cup of hot cocoa; his hands trembling slightly. "We shouldn't have stopped" he murmured bitterly, "that night...we should've kept searching; if we did, maybe we...maybe he would've..." For years; the Boy Wonder prided himself as a strong and firm hero, one that barely let anything shake his resolve (with the exception of Slade.)

But in that moment, Robin found himself on the verge of a mental and emotional breakdown. As if sensing this, Starfire hurried over to her boyfriend and held him tenderly; while also letting out small tears of despair. "I know, dearest Robin...I know" she whispered, "we _all_ wished to continue our search that night...but couldn't due to certain circumstances."

After that, Robin allowed himself to break down a little and took the Tamaranean princess in her arms; sobbing softly. Meanwhile, Cyborg was currently fighting the urge to chuck his chair through a nearby window. Lastly, Raven's own resolve was slowly chipping away as well.

Even with her hood up, Batman could see her biting her lip while trying to hold back the tears in her clenched eyes. For almost five minutes, neither he nor Gordon wished to disturb the kids; thinking they deserved a brief moment to grieve. Once the five minutes were up, Raven used her magic to levitate a box of tissues her way.

Once it was within reach, each Titan took a few of them and did their best to dry their tears away. "Are you doing okay, gang" asked the commissioner, "do you think you can keep talking with us?" At first, the team came close to saying "no;" considering what was to come next.

But in the end, they realized that there was no point in delaying anything and decided to continue. But not before they had some more cocoa to help calm their nerves. "Cash, bring in a few more K-Cups" shouted Gordon, "we're gonna be in here a while." No sooner had he said this, an officer in the next room called out in response; proclaiming they'd be coming "lickity split."

"Best bring in some coffee cups as well, Sir" grumbled Raven, "with what we're about to tell your boss, I feel like I'm gonna need something stronger to get through it all."

(First AN: I know this seemed shorter than the previous chapters, folks. But with the holidays and New Year's Eve and all, I had been busy. In any case, I feel like this chapter gave us just enough to really show us the grimness of the situation.

Where could BB have gone, what does Joker have planned for him and the team and most of all; with the exception of Batman...who else can help look for him? Find out next time, as our story continues.)

(Second AN: The whole thing with a block of Jump City having an office complex of some kind is in reference to the Teen Titans finale, Things Change. But while _that _episode failed to tell us if the team's favorite hot spots were gone forever. _I've_ decided to be clearer and made it so they were all simply relocated, instead of being closed indefinitely.

It may seem like it doesn't quite mesh with the "lesson" Things Change was trying to tell us. But I figured...if they were all closed for good instead of relocated, where else would B hang out at? Regardless, I hope everything seems clear to you here."

(Final AN: I know Rae attacking Bullock with her magic may seem out of character to some of you. But bear in mind, what happened to BB during his encounter with Joker had left both her _and_ the rest of the team emotionally broken. As such, any of the typical stoicness or deadpan nature she usually would have is now on the brink of collapse and her emotions are slowly getting the better of her.

To understand _why_ it's happening, I recommend you keep reading; all will be revealed, in time.)


	4. Chapter Three: A Desperate Search

A Desperate Search

With their drink supplies restocked and their cups refilled, the Titans decided to take a small break before continuing on with their story. As the Titans sat silently and drank their beverages; Gordon was busy jotting down all that he'd heard, so far into a notepad. "So...let's recap what's been said here" the commissioner murmured, "your friend/teammate, Beast Boy suddenly vanished while on patrol and no one else had seen any sign of him since then?"

With a heavy heart, Robin let out a deep sigh and murmured one simple word; "yes." Upon seeing his former protégé in this state, Batman couldn't help but frown; not out of disappointment or anger...but in sadness. He knew how close he probably was to his team; thus, losing any of them was like the equivalent of being shot...it was all very painful.

"That's when he and his team decided to call upon _me_" muttered the Caped Crusader, "along with...a few others." After hearing the mention of others being involved, Gordon asked if they got assistance from the Justice League or Robin's old comrades from the Young Justice branch. "That was my first idea...but then, I realized something" Robin replied, "I felt that if we _did_ contact them, whoever kidnapped Beast Boy would know we were onto them and finish him off before we could find him."

The moment this idea was brought up, the Titans collectively grimaced with disgust. "Dude...do _not_ put that image in my head" Cyborg groaned, "I'm still havin' trouble with letting go of what we already saw!" Almost immediately, Robin realized his small error and apologized to everyone for it; before continuing.

"So...when I realized calling all of _them_ would be too big of a risk, I chose to call on Batman" he stated, "but then, I had one other idea." His curiosity piqued, Gordon asked who else Robin was able to contact. "Because of their connection to Beast Boy, we felt they were the obvious choice" Raven explained, "it was his old superhero team...the Doom Patrol."

Admittedly, Batman had not met with this team of "heroes" face-to-face before. But he was rather familiar on the histories of every one of the current members. There was the former Hollywood actress (Rita Farr/Elasti-Girl,) the famous racer who suffered a severe accident (Cliff Steele/Robotman,) the military pilot who suffered severe radiation burns in space while piloting a test plane (Larry Trainor/Negative Man) and several others. In all the time he knew about Robin's group, he never realized that one of its members was part of another hero team beforehand.

When asked why Beast Boy defected from the group, the Titans suddenly tensed up. "He didn't 'defect' from the Doom Patrol, Batman" Robin answered bluntly, "he was kicked out due to the incredibly bull-headed leader, Mento favoring victory over the lives of his own team." Curious, Commissioner Gordon asked him to elaborate more on that.

"In a way, he's a lot like Batman" the Boy Wonder replied, "both of them are geniuses, they have tech that's far beyond anyone else's (with Mento's being his helmet,) they're rather...overly-serious and they have...connections with very rich people." From here; Robin explained that Mento had "connections" with one, Steve Dayton. Dayton was No.5 among the world's most wealthy individuals, which nearly put him on the same level as Bruce Wayne. "I'm familiar with him" murmured Batman, "I'm also familiar with him falling out with Ms. Farr, before Beast Boy's disappearance."

It took almost four minutes for the Titans to recover from this sudden "bombshell" of a reveal. During their moment of silence, the team felt thankful that Beast Boy wasn't present to hear this news. "Funny...when we got to the Patrol's HQ and saw that Mento wasn't there, we just thought he went on a solo mission" Cyborg blurted out, "we had no idea all _that_ stuff happened."

At first, Batman felt like bringing the team up to speed on things. But he soon realized that the matter was far too complicated to discuss, at the moment. "We'll talk about that later" he said simply, "right now, we need to get back to business."

The Titans nodded silently in understanding and bade Robin to continue the story. "Sometime after I've contacted you, the team and I made our way up to New York" he explained, "it was here that we sought out Doom Manor, the home/headquarters of the Doom Patrol."

(Flashback to Doom Patrol Manor)

As we come back to our story; we find the Titans in the T-Car riding side-by-side with the Batmobile through East Hampton, New York. For almost two hours, both vehicles zoomed through street after street; searching for something. "The mansion should be around her someplace" Robin said through the communicator, "keep your eyes open, everyone."

Eventually, the T-Car's scanners found the address at the edge of town and pulled into the driveway. Truthfully, this was the team's first time visiting the estate since they've met the Doom Patrol. Needless to say, Cyborg was quite awestruck by the size of it and presumed Beast Boy had been "holding out on them."

"How come grass stain never told us his old team was rich" he exclaimed, "makes me wonder why he begged me so much for cash." After rolling her eyes slightly; Raven suggested that after he parted ways with them, it was possible that he didn't want their money. "Still, I can't believe this is the patrol's HQ" Cyborg stated, "I always thought they had an underground base or something."

At first, the other Titans were prepared to shoot down their cyber-teen friend's idea; believing it sounded too preposterous to be real. But then, they realized two things; the first one being that Batman himself had an underground HQ (of sorts.) Therefore, the idea didn't seem too out there. The second matter was that Cyborg's statement reminded them of something Beast Boy would say; which made them feel quite sad.

"This is Dayton Manor, a mansion built by Steve Dayton himself" Batman deduced, "or as you all probably know him...Mento." To say that the Caped Crusader's words surprised the Titans would be an understatement. "How'd you know Mento and this...'Steve Dayton' are the same person" questioned Starfire, "none of _us_ mentioned anything."

In response to her inquiry; Robin explained that as the "World's Greatest Detective," Batman had his way of figuring these things out. "So, what do we do now" questioned Raven, "do we knock or just...barge in?" No sooner had she said this, an alarm suddenly rang out and a series of weapons appeared out of the grass and around the house; ready to fire."

(Back to reality)

Back in the Interrogation Room; Gordon found himself struggling to hold back a laugh, which caused Batman to shake his head slightly. "C'mon, Jim; it's not _that_ funny" he murmured, "none of us knew they had a security system, even me." After taking a moment to calm down, Commissioner Gordon cleared his throat and urged everyone to continue."

"Right...so; once the system was activated, we were all prepared to defend ourselves" Robin explained, "Raven even considered using her powers to short everything out." When asked if she went along with the idea, the young empath shook her head in reply. "Didn't need to" she stated, "just as we were ready to defend ourselves, all the guns and the alarm suddenly shut off."

As Robin took over the story again, he explained that they were all turned off from inside the mansion. "That was when the Doom Patrol came outside" he stated, "and they didn't look too keen on seeing us, at first."

(Flashback: Outside Doom Manor)

As the array of guns took aim, the Titans and Batman took defensive positions; expecting an attack. But just as quickly as they appeared, the alarm slowly died down and the guns all simultaneously deactivated themselves. "Huh...What's going on" questioned Robin confusedly, "Batman, did you...have anything to do with this?"

The Dark Knight shook his head and assumed someone inside the house must've seen their arrival and deactivated the security system. Surely enough, his assumption was correct; as the front doors of the mansion suddenly burst open. Not long after, everyone soon spotted a large metal man marching towards them.

"I thought we told you idiots last time" he grumbled bitterly, "we don't want what you're selling!" Naturally, this outburst confused Starfire a little and she asked Robin if Robotman had them confused with someone else. "He's probably mistaking us for sales people, Star" murmured Raven, "you know...those obnoxious guys that always come around trying to sell hair brushes, vacuum cleaners and stuff to people?"

The young Tamaranean gasped softly in understanding and did her best to politely inform Robotman that he was mistaken. "C'mon, dude...look at us" Cyborg exclaimed, "don't you remember, we're Beast Boy's friends!" Upon hearing this, Robotman stared at the four teens intently while also passing a brief glance onto Batman as well.

Finally, it all came together for him and his demeanor began to soften a little (which was weird; considering his robot face didn't quite emote that much.) "Sorry, kids; force of habit" sighed Robotman, "you'd be surprise how many people come here wanting money from this place." After that was settled, everyone got the chance to get a good look at their robot comrade.

As expected, Robotman still possessed his copper chassis; as well as what looked like a communicator device on his chest. But now; he appeared to be dressed in a black leather jacket, a t-shirt that read "Gabba Gabba Hey" on the front, jeans with tears on the knees and had a pair of specially made rubber boots over his robot feet. "Wow! Diggin' the new look, man" Cyborg complimented, "makes ya look real tough."

Robotman smiled (or lack thereof) at the teen and said it was a miracle his clothes were able to fit him at all. "Had this jacket of mine since my racing days" he said fondly, "happy to see it survived my crash." After that, he took another look at Batman and tilted his head in confusion.

"I know you, you're that vigilante from Gotham" he surmised, "what are you doing with these kids?" In response, Robin said that he and Batman had history together; which Robotman remembered quite vividly. "So, what brings you to the mansion" he asked, "I don't remember anybody giving you guys a call...do we even know your number?"

The Titans politely disregarded the question and asked if they could come inside. "You should get the rest of the team together as well" Robin suggested, "there's something important we need to tell you all." While the request seemed rather odd to him, Robotman still conceded to it and led everyone inside the mansion.

(Line Break)

Within moments, everyone had gathered within the parlor and had taken their respective seats. Upon looking over the rest of the team; the Titans discovered that, like Robotman, the remaining members of the Doom Patrol have also changed since last they've seen them. Elasti-Girl was dressed in a 1950's-style semi-formal dress, black high-heels and had a gold strap necklace on.

As for Negative Man, the only thing that remained the same was the bandages he wore around his head and hands. The rest of his look however, had a few upgrades. He had a pair of plastic sunglasses on his head, a shearling trench coat, a green sweatshirt underneath it, slim-fit jeans and long black boots.

In all honestly, it felt odd seeing the team "out of uniform." But Robin guessed that after Elasti-Girl's supposed falling out with Mento, they did away with their team look; deciding to appear a bit more casual from then on. The last one to enter the room was a fellow that seemed relatively new to the team.

He was a dapper-looking gentleman with a full-faced red beard and a head of matching red hair. He wore a brown dress jacket, a yellowish-white undershirt and a black tie. But the most noticeable feature about the man was the fact he was confined to a wheelchair; which led Robin to presume that he was a paraplegic.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I speak for us all when I bid you welcome to 'Doom Manor'" the man said politely, "I am Dr. Niles Caulder...but the team here knows me best as Chief." Upon hearing the man's name, Batman's eyes grew wide beneath his cowl. "It's a pleasure to meet you in person, Doctor" he said in greeting while shaking Niles' hand, "I wasn't aware that you were affiliated with these heroes."

Without hesitation, Robotman admitted that Dr. Caulder had been a big help for each of them; after their accidents. "Doc here was the one who put my brain in this body" he said while patting his chest lightly, "it ain't pretty...but I'm still kickin'." Just as the rest of the Patrol was prepared to discuss their own histories with Caulder, Raven raised her hand to silence them.

"We can deal with these pleasantries later" she murmured bluntly, "right now, we've got serious business to discuss." With that statement, the Doom Patrol's collective demeanor immediately went into "Business Mode." "Yes, of course; my apologies for almost getting off-track" Caulder muttered apologetically, "what can we all do to help you?"

For a moment or two, the Titans sat in silence; unsure of what to say or _how_ they should say it. Even Batman felt wary on how to break the news to all of them. Upon sensing the group's silence, Elasti-Girl begged for someone to speak up.

"We...uh...We don't know how to tell you this, Ma'am" murmured Cyborg, "but...recently, we were on patrol and...and..." Unable to continue on further, Cyborg turned towards Robin; hoping that _he_ would be more successful. Alas, even the normally firm Boy Wonder found it difficult to tell the truth.

"GODDAMMIT, WOULD SOMEONE _PLEASE_ TALK ALREADY" roared Robotman, "all this waiting is giving me a headache!" With that, the Titans were given just the push they needed to speak up. "Everyone...during our patrol, Beast Boy...he's disappeared and we don't know where he might've gone" Robin muttered hesitantly, "I'm...I'm sorry."

Upon hearing that their teammate and youngest member of their surrogate family had suddenly vanished, the Doom Patrol tensed up with shock. For what felt like ages, no one on either side had spoken a word. Then, everyone could see Rita's hands clenching at the armrests of her chair tightly; which was definitely _not _a good sign.

As if sensing her rage, Negative Man cleared his throat and asked the team if they had any idea on who might've taken Beast Boy captive. "At the moment, no" Batman replied, "but before Robin called me for help, something else was going on in _my_ neck of the woods." With a sarcastic grunt, Robotman proclaimed that the Caped Crusader's issues were completely irrelevant to the situation.

"On the contrary, Cliff" murmured the Chief, "the fact that Batman's business seemed to have happened just as Beast Boy went missing seems like a rather odd coincidence." With this in mind, Dr. Caulder asked Batman to reveal his findings to everyone; hoping it would help in their situation.

"To make a long story short, Gotham City has not seen much from one of its most notorious felons" muttered the Caped Crusader, "he's someone whom both Robin and I have had many encounters with...Joker." The moment this name was mentioned, there was a mixed response of confused and disturbed murmurs. While Star wasn't fully familiar with Joker's history with Robin; from the look she saw on his face, she presumed he was a "Slade-level threat."

Meanwhile, the Doom Patrol claimed they only heard small tidbits about him; mostly about the sort of weapons he used. Lastly, Raven felt like they weren't in too much danger. "Think about it, how dangerous could someone called 'Joker' be" she asked sarcastically, "what will he do, put a whoopee cushion in the T-Car...spray us with a squirting flower?"

There were times, in the past where Robin didn't pay much mind to Raven's sarcastic attitude like the others did. But in this situation, her comments felt rather disrespectful and he was prepared to let her know that. "Laugh now, Raven" challenged the Boy Wonder, "but when you find yourself sprayed with toxic laughing gas, being gnawed at by chattering teeth or electrocuted by a joy buzzer that generates 50,000 volts...don't come crying to me!"

Both teams were taken aback by his words, shocked to hear him speak so viciously to a friend. But Batman on the other hand, remained indifferent on the matter; knowing full well the severity of the matter. "Robin speaks the truth" he stated, "I've dealt with Joker many times and despite his namesake, he is _not_ one to be underestimated."

With that in mind, all the pieces started to fall into place. At the moment, it seemed possible that the reason why Joker hadn't been seen in Gotham that much could've been due to him spreading his chaos to another city. He recalled a similar incident where he tried to help one Lex Luthor kill Superman in Metropolis, long ago.

"Well, if this 'Joker' is the one holding my Garfield hostage; we've gotta find him before it's too late" Elasti-Girl decreed, "I failed him once before after Mento kicked him off the team...I will _not_ fail him again!" With that said, the Doom Patrol agreed to join the Titans and Batman in their search; which they happily welcomed.

(Back to Reality)

After this point in the story, the Titans decided to take a brief pause and calm their nerves with some cocoa. In the meantime, Commissioner Gordon was writing down the last bits of what he'd just been told. "Okay...there we go" he murmured, "so, did having some extra eyes and ears help in your search?"

Sadly, the Titans shook their heads in sorrow; proclaiming that upon returning to Gotham, they immediately began to search every part of the city. Yet even with so many people helping, they didn't find any clues to where Beast Boy or the Joker could be. "We've looked for any possible leads, grilled every small-time crook that seemed remotely connected to Joker" Robin grumbled, "Rita came close to losing her cool on several occasions."

When asked what the woman did, during these specific moments; Raven confessed that she attempted to use her powers on them. "With her abilities to stretch and grow her body in numerous ways, she already had a few ideas on how to intimidate these criminals" she explained, "at one point, she grew up to giant-size and almost crushed someone to death in her hands." Upon bringing up this particular moment, the Titans collectively shivered with fear; wondering what might've happened, if Batman didn't intervene.

"I can honestly say I don't blame Ms. Farr for her actions" Gordon sighed, "according to records; by taking in your friend as part of their team, Beast Boy seemed to be the closest thing she had to a son." Upon hearing these words, Robin and Raven's eyes grew as wide as dinner plates. All this time, they never realized just how deep Beast Boy's connection was with certain members of his old team.

"Sadly, no matter what we did; we were still no closer to finding our friend" Starfire said with a sad sniffle, "this went on for a month and a half...until at last, we found something."

(Gotham City: Rooftops)

After almost two months of nothing but dead ends, Batman and the Titans were beginning to fear the worst; that Beast Boy may truly be gone. But then, the former got a message from one of his partners (a young lady named Oracle) about a strange object being seen on one of the rooftops downtown. At first, Starfire believed it could've been Beast Boy.

But Robin believed they still needed to be careful, thinking that this was one of Joker's tricks. "Enough talk, let's get moving" Elasti-Girl shouted, "every minute we waste standing here means another instant where Garfield could be suffering...so, GET MOVING!" Not needing to be told twice, everyone hurried off to the location revealed in Oracle's message.

As they approached the building in question, the Titans and Doom Patrol suddenly spotted something on the center spot of the roof. From their current position; they couldn't clearly make out what it was, unfortunately. But it looked to be like some kind of giant box.

"Maybe the kid's trapped inside of it" Negative Man suggested, "we better get him out right quick." With that said, everyone hurried over to the next rooftop and found...what looked like a giant-sized Jack-in-the-Box. While Raven, Cyborg and Starfire stared at this object in utter confusion; Batman and Robin suddenly tensed up.

Then, before anyone could say a word; the duo took out a throwing weapon (a Batarang for Batman and a Birdarang for Robin) and threw it at the box's latch. The combined projectiles struck it dead center, causing the lid to suddenly fly open. What popped out, much to their surprise, was what looked like a paper jester made in the likeness of Beast Boy.

Around its neck was what looked like some sort of scarf and it let out an eerie recorded version of Beast Boy's trademarked laugh. For a moment or two; the heroes didn't know whether to be confused, angry, annoyed...or some combination of the three. But before anyone could think anymore on the matter, the jester's head suddenly split apart; revealing what looked like a grenade.

"It's a trap" Batman exclaimed, "EVERYBODY, TAKE COVER!" Without needing to be told twice, Raven gathered everyone close to her and summoned up a magic shield barrier with her powers. Then, mere seconds later; the grenade exploded and the Jack-in-the-Box was destroyed.

Though relatively unharmed, the Titans and Doom Patrol felt hugely displeased with themselves; ashamed that they fell for such an obvious trick. But then, they noticed the scarf floating down towards them and it appeared to still be in one piece; despite a few minor tears from the explosion. When it finally landed, Batman took the thing in hand and saw that it wasn't a scarf...it was a tattered straightjacket.

Upon inspecting the garment, seconds later; he came across something that made his blood run cold. With the aid of her powers, Raven could sense Batman's sudden change in emotion and asked what was wrong. "Everyone...I know where Joker's taken your friend" muttered the Dark Knight, "he's gone to Arkham!"

(First AN: Ooh boy...just when things seem to be looking up, Fate comes along and rips the carpet from under your feet; tripping you up in the process. What will our heroes find at Arkham Asylum, what is Joker plotting on doing with our green hero and will everyone be able to save him in time? Tune in next time, to find out!)

(Second AN: The Doom Patrol's looks in this chapter are a blend of elements from both the comics and the Live-Action DC Universe Online Series, Doom Patrol. Even though they didn't look as I've described within the Titans Cartoon. I thought it would be a nice touch to give them each a new look, considering how long it's been since they last saw the Titans.)

(Third AN: The "falling out" between Mento and Elasti-Girl is in reference to something that happened within the comics. To make a long story short, it seems that Steve had used his helmet's powers on Rita's mind on numerous occasions. Understandably; she divorced him, the moment she found out about all this.

To be honest, I always knew he was a jerk.)

(Fourth AN: Though Niles hasn't appeared within the Titans cartoon series, I felt that he needed to hear what happened to BB. I'm also aware of some...shady parts of his record. But such things won't be mentioned within this story...at least, not right away.)

(Final AN: The Joker teaming up with Luthor thing is a light reference to the Batman/Superman Adventures episode, World's Finest.)


	5. Chapter Four: A Grim Surprise

A Grim Surprise

Sometime after leaving the rooftop, Batman and Co. drove/flew down towards the far coast of the city; where a lone island lay solitary out in the water. During the journey, the team was brought up to speed on the nature of their destination. "Originally, the asylum was meant to house and (hopefully) rehabilitate the criminally insane" Batman explained, "but since the days it was first built, the building's types of residents swiftly became more...diverse."

Without missing a beat, Raven helped "finish his story" by pointing out how the more "diverse" members of the inmates included some of his and Robin's enemies. "Why send such vile clorbags to this place" questioned Starfire, "on my planet, all those who were considered...psychologically unfit were either banished or put to death." The Titans couldn't help but shudder at this revelation, while also inwardly commenting on how Tamaranean culture seemed rather barbaric.

"Things are different here, Princess" Batman said bluntly, "regardless of how cruel the patients might be; Amadeus Arkham, the facility's creator, believed they could be saved." No sooner had he said this; the Caped Crusader soon realized that Amadeus didn't count on inmates who were psychotic murderers, mutants or people with multiple personality disorders. Were he alive today, Batman believed the man would be shocked by how much things had changed.

"If your villains are as bad as you say, Batman; then...I don't think this Arkham place is doin' its job" Cyborg said matter-of-factly, "I'm surprised the place is still open now." A split-second after he said this, Batman informed Cyborg that they have now reached their destination; Arkham Asylum. Much to everyone's (except Batman's) surprise, the building appeared partially torn down and abandoned.

Upon taking a good look at it, the Titans couldn't help but shiver at the sight of the building. In the dark of the night, it looked like it was left to rot; like a corpse that had been partially eaten by scavengers. "Wait...y'all don't think Joker's actually here, do ya" questioned Cyborg, "only a nut would come to this kind of a place."

Batman couldn't help but give a light yet ironic chuckle at the half-robot's comment, before reminding everyone just how "nutty" the Joker truly was. "But...it still doesn't make sense" Starfire murmured fearfully, "if Joker truly is behind Garfield's capture, what intentions does he have with him?" Rather than wait for an answer, Elasti-Girl formed a massive fist with her powers and slammed it against the door; knocking it off its hinges.

For a moment; no one had spoken a word, due to the shock they've felt over seeing Miss Farr's actions. When she took notice of this, Rita dismissed their looks of shock and/or disapproval and entered the building. "You can scold me on making too much noise all you want, everybody" she said firmly, "but every moment we waste time is another moment Joker is tormenting my Garfield!"

At first, everyone truly _was_ close to calling out Elasti-Girl on her actions. But then, they realized two things; that the Joker might've already known they were coming...and that it would be very unwise to get in the way of a raging mother figure. "Let's just go in" grunted Robotman, "I'm just as anxious to find this clown as Rita is!"

With that said, everyone climbed out of their vehicles and rushed into the main hall of the asylum; which was a vast and incredibly creepy room. Up ahead, they could see a pair of statues; one of which appeared to be a middle-aged and rather disheveled man. "This is a statue of Amadeus himself" explained Batman, "the one beside him is that of Quincy Sharp, former warden of the asylum.

He then went on to say that long ago, the city agreed to have all inmates be transported to a newer and hopefully more secure location. "Sharp left his position of warden, before that; confessing the position proved...too dangerous for him." Raven rolled her eyes slightly and felt that the man should've thought that earlier, before he signed up.

"If I recall correctly; at one point, didn't he try to run for mayor" questioned Caulder, "from what I've heard, he didn't stay in office for very long." Batman nodded and explained how just like at the asylum; during his time as mayor, he had one too many hostage experiences...with _him_ being the hostage. "Where he's gone now, no one knows" Robin stated, "but not a lot of people felt bad about seeing him go, Joker among them."

After that, all three teams decided to split up and search every area of the building. "Maintain radio contact at all times" instructed Batman, "if you find any sign of Beast Boy, signal us." Everyone nodded in understanding and went off on their separate ways; determined to find their friend at any cost.

(Back to Reality)

At this point in the story, the Titans decided to take a quick pause and sip on their drinks. As Raven eased her cup towards her lips, Gordon soon noticed that her hands were trembling; which probably meant that something was on her mind. "Look, dear...if you don't want to keep going, it's okay" the commissioner whispered sympathetically, "I can already tell what's probably coming next."

Though she still appreciated the man's kindness, Raven had never liked the idea of appearing helpless in the eyes of others. But at the same time, Gordon was right; their story was moments away from reaching one of the two points she hated about it. In that moment, she was mentally debating with herself on whether she and the team should keep talking...or if they should just end it there.

Then, at that moment, she felt not one but three pairs of hands lightly patting on her back. Raven looked over her shoulder slightly and saw the other Titans gazing at her with sorrowful expressions. After ten seconds of silence, Cyborg decided to speak first.

"We know it hurts, Rave" he murmured, "but...but we gotta tell the commissioner the rest." Robin and Starfire murmured the same thing to Raven, all while trying to fight back tears in their eyes. It was then that she realized there was no point in holding back now.

After taking one more sip of her hot chocolate and chanting her famous mantra of "Azarath Metrion Zinthos" a few times, Raven was finally ready to continue. "For what felt like hours, we searched every corner of the building" she stated, "but all we could find were empty cells, broken hospital equipment and dry blood stains on some of the floors and walls." Upon hearing about the stains, Gordon asked if any of them feared it might've been Beast Boy's own.

"Thankfully, it wasn't" Batman replied, "using the scanner in my cowl, I saw that the stains were over a year or so old; which couldn't have been his." He then added how Starfire was the very first to almost jump to this conclusion. But this was simply because she had never ventured within the asylum before.

"Regardless; for quite some time, we didn't find any sign of Gar anywhere" murmured Negative Man, "and then...we heard it." Almost immediately, Gordon stopped writing down into his notepad; obviously taken off-guard by the sudden mention of "it." "What did you hear" he asked with a slightly eager tone, "was it someone screaming?"

Right away, both Batman and the Titans shook their heads "no" in response; which caused Gordon to sigh softly with relief. "Nope, strange as it seemed...it was someone singing" explained Cyborg, "it was comin' from somewhere within the medical wing of the building."

(Back to the Story)

Upon regrouping in an old hallway; Batman, the Titans and the Doom Patrol suddenly heard a faint voice singing from far away. At first, everyone thought it was simply the P.A. system on the fritz. But then, after listening more closely; the heroes realized that it was someone singing "Hush Little Baby" somewhere down the hall.

Without any further delay, everyone hurried down the hall; all while following the sounds of the singing. Farther and farther down they went until, at last; they reached a room that read Operating Theater. "What is this place" questioned Starfire, "do they allow prisoners to view the movies here?"

Robin shook his head slightly and explained, in the best way he could, that _this_ particular theater was used for surgeries. "It's called a theater because all doctors in training would watch the procedure in the seats upstairs" Cyborg added, "it's weird, we know...but it's a real thing." While Starfire did agree that the nature of the room _was_ odd, she had a more pressing concern; who was in there now?

"We will split up both ways" Batman instructed, "Starfire, you and Raven go with Cyborg and observe from above while the rest of us will go through here." The two ladies nodded in understanding and flew up the steps with Cyborg following behind them. This left Batman, the Doom Patrol and Robin to enter through the main entrance.

"Tread carefully" Robin whispered, "Joker is very crafty, we don't know if he has any traps in store for us inside." Everyone nodded in understanding and pushed open the doors. What they found inside was a rather...surprising sight.

Instead of finding the room filled with old medical equipment, it was remodeled to resemble a household kitchen and den. On this stage was a woman setting a potted plant atop of a small kitchen table. She was dressed in a red and black jester's outfit with a white collar, a jester hat, white facepaint with a sort of black paint around her eyes that resembled a mask and black lipstick.

Eventually, she spotted the heroes ahead of her and giggled with joy. "Oh, Puddin', come downstairs" she called out sweetly, "we've got company!" All eyes craned upward at the second level of the stage; where a fake 60's-style TV set, standing lamp and a lounge chair could be found.

In this chair, sitting comfortably with a pipe between his lips was the Clown Prince of Crime himself; The Joker. He looked as though he was casually reading the newspaper, which he knew would drive the heroes utterly nuts with confusion. When Joker looked down and spotted his "guests", he smiled at them with his trademark grin and waved hello.

"Welcome to our happy little home, everybody" he said casually, "you should've called and told me you'd be coming, Bats...I would've baked one of my famous pies." Not wanting to waste time beating around the bush, Raven and the Doom Patrol angrily approached Joker and said only four simple words; "where...is...Beast Boy?!" Not long after that, Joker gave them a sort of disgusted look; as if the heroes offended him, somehow.

"That is just rude" he grumbled, "no hello, no hearty handshakes...you didn't even bother to greet Harley here." At first, Starfire and the Doom Patrol simply stared in confusion; wondering who "Harley" was. That was when Dr. Caulder directed his gaze at the jester and gasped.

"Harleen...Harleen Quinzel" he cried in shock, "how can this be, one of the most brilliant psychiatric minds in the world is working alongside this..._crook?!_" Upon hearing the man's insults, "Harley" kicked Caulder in the leg; causing his wheelchair to almost tip over backwards. But before he fell over completely, Robotman quickly caught the chair and brought it back upright.

"Nobody talks about Mistuh J like that around me" Harley seethed, "especially not some damn bearded cripple!" The rest of the Doom Patrol glared at her angrily and were prepared to gang up on her. But then, Batman held up his arm slightly and demanded they held back.

"We're not here for your games, Joker" he growled, "tell us where Beast Boy is..._now!_" Much to everyone's annoyance, the criminal couple stared at the heroes with looks of mock confusion and claimed they had no idea who they were talking about. "The only beasts we've got are Bud and Lou, my widdle babies" Harley cooed softly, "and they're takin a nap right now."

When the other three Titans asked who "Bud and Lou" were, Robin pointed towards the opposite side of the room; where a pair of large hyenas was found slumbering. _"_Those _are her 'babies'"_ Cyborg screamed mentally, _"and here I thought kids having Constrictors for pets was a weird trend!"_ Meanwhile; Starfire, for a brief moment, found herself lowering her guard slightly at the sight of the animals.

"Oh, they are quite adorable" she said adorably, "but...I imagine they aren't quite as pleasant as puppies are." Suddenly, with great fury burning in her heart; Elasti-Girl cracked her knuckles and stomped over towards Joker. "Where...is...Garfield" she demanded, "we know you have him here, so...BRING HIM OUT!"

Once more, the couple acted like the "innocently stupid" types and proclaimed they didn't know of anyone named Garfield. "The only one I heard of is a fat, lazy, orange cat that loves lasagna" Joker stated, "really funny stuff, his comics." Infuriated by their games, Elasti-Girl came dangerously close to wanting to "go big" and stomp them beneath her heels.

But then, after tapping her forehead in thought for sometime; Harley let out a gasp and said she had a "hunch" on who they might've been looking for. "They must be talkin' about Lil' J, Puddin'" she stated, "do _you_ want to show them the surprise or should I do it?" The whole time this was going on, the heroes were becoming more and more frustrated with their antics.

Then, up in the second level; Raven suddenly felt a jolt spike through her, causing her to gasp softly. Cyborg and Star immediately took notice of this and asked what was wrong. "It...It's faint but I think I sense a life sign around here, somewhere" Raven murmured, "it could be Beast Boy."

Upon hearing this news; Cyborg reported this to Robin and the others below. With this small discovery; the Titans, Doom Patrol and even Batman felt something inside of them that they hadn't felt in weeks...hope. "Forget about these two clowns right now" Robotman declared, "search every inch of this place, we ain't leavin' without the squirt!"

With that command, everyone began to furiously search the room; while Cyborg and the girls remained on watch up above. Meanwhile, Joker and Harley simply stood back and watched the scene unfold with smiles on their faces. "Oh, this is almost as fun as watching an Easter Egg Hunt" gushed Harley, "except..._our_ eggs explode."

After almost five minutes of searching, not one of them found any signs of Beast Boy. But then, Batman and Robin spotted a curtain covering a gaping hole in the wall. "That must be where they're keeping him" whispered the Boy Wonder, "hang on, I'm coming to get you."

With this thought in mind, he made a sudden beeline for the curtain with Batman following close behind. But just as the duo was mere inches away from reaching the spot, a shot was fired and they were suddenly tangled up in large strands of red ribbon. It was then that the Doom Patrol and the remaining Titans spotted Harley, who was holding a massive bazooka over her shoulder.

After placing what she called "Mama's Lil' Helper" onto the table, she glared softly at all the heroes and gave them the "shaming" hand gesture. "No peeking until it's time for the reveal, everybody" Harley said scoldingly, "Lil' J's still sleeping." Pleased with his partner's protective nature, Joker gave Harley a sweet grin and kissed her cheek.

Then, he looked over at Batman with a sort of sullen expression; like someone who had a long day at work and was way passed the point of exhaustion. "This all seems familiar; doesn't it, Bats" he asked, "you come into my home, try to discover my plans and then, either me or Harley here traps you."

Right away; the Doom Patrol could Joker was stalling and once more, demanded to see Beast Boy. Not long after, Joker pulled out a rather silly looking gun from his coat and ordered everyone to be patient. "I'm getting to that point, kiddies" he sniggered, "see...like I just said, I've been doing this game with the Dynamic Duo of Dipsticks for years and the fact is...neither of us is getting any younger."

After that, Harley started hopping up and down while waving her hand; begging for Joker to let her tell the next part. "Since we've realized we're gettin' on in years, Mistuh J and me decided was time to...expand our lil' family" she giggled, "you know, have a kid." After this; Harley added that rather than go through the "joy of childbirth," her and Joker decided to adopt.

"Fat chance of _that_ happening, you assholes" Negative Man seethed, "no agency in their right mind would let you have custody of a kid." Despite the overall truth in his words, something in NM's bones told him that Joker and Harley already knew of the issue. "Fortunately for us, we knew a couple of people who had oodles of kids just lying around" Joker stated, "Batsy, Bird Boy...I'm looking at you."

The whole the clown was talking, the Dynamic Duo felt their blood boil and they immediately began their plan to escape. Though their hands were bound together, they still had some tricks up their sleeves (figuratively _and_ literally speaking.) While making certain not to rouse any suspicions, both Batman and Robin's fingers reached into their sleeves and pulled out a switchblade knife.

Once the blades were out, they began cutting away at the ribbons as quickly and carefully as they could. Meanwhile, the time finally came when Joker and Harley decided to reveal their little "surprise." "Since I already knew you were rather protective of your little ones, Bats; we decided to...borrow one of Bird Boy's little friends, during our little vacay to Jump City" Joker explained, "so, we staged a little purse snatching gag to bring one of 'em to us."

After that reveal, Harley graciously bowed to everyone; proclaiming she put on the "greatest performance of her life." "Performance...what are you talking about" seethed Elasti-Girl, "where's Garfield?!" In response to such a rude demand, Joker approached the woman and slapped her hard across the face; all telling her not to interrupt "story time."

"As I was saying...Harley, my crew and I put together a fake purse snatching situation in the alleys" he explained, "and like the green dope he was, your little friend bought it; hook...line and sinker!" After that, everyone demanded how they managed to capture their friend. "It wasn't really that hard" Harley said matter-of-factly, "after he came to help me up, I...'rewarded' his selflessness with a hearty handshake."

After this, she held up her hand and revealed what looked like a simple joy buzzer; which didn't seem all that serious, at first. But then, Cyborg quickly saw small sparks of electricity emanating from it; which meant this truly was a literal shock buzzer. "It looks like your little witch girl friend was right about him all along, Bird Boy" Joker said mockingly, "this kid truly is as dumb as he is green."

Robin glowered viciously at the clown and began cutting away at his binds more quickly now. Meanwhile, the others demanded to know what happened to Beast Boy; after they captured him. "The boy looked a little tired, after the fight" Joker stated, "so...we brought him here for a little rest."

Once Harley took over the story again; she proclaimed that after a little "TLC," Beast Boy was a brand new person. "C'mon, let me show you" Joker said while gripping the curtain, "mind you...he's just waking up from his 'nap;' so, don't be alarmed if he looks a little haggard." After that, he finally drew back the curtain; revealing the inside of the hole in the wall.

Upon first glance, everyone (save for Starfire) realized that it was an old shock therapy room; designed to administer "appropriate disciplinary action" onto any inmates who acted out of line. But what really shocked everyone was that there was a person was lying on the table inside. "What's wrong, everybody; can't see our little boy's sweet smile" Joker asked, "let me...'shed some light on the situation.'"

After saying that, he walked over to a wall and flipped on a large power switch; which in turn, caused the lights in the old therapy room to come on. Once they did, everyone got a good look at who was lying on the table...and felt their stomach's churn. In that moment, each hero felt a different set of thoughts run through their minds.

Batman and Robin: No...

Dr. Caulder: Sweet Jesus

Negative Man: My...God.

Robotman: That son of a...what did he do?

Cyborg: What in the actual, ever-loving what?

Starfire: By X'hall

Raven: No...please, let this be a cruel dream!

For a moment or two, Joker said nothing; he simply stood in place, savoring the heroes' collective displeasure and chuckling softly. Then, the time had finally come for him and Harley to introduce their new "family member." "He needed a little molding, of course" Joker muttered, "but...what kid doesn't these days."

He then pulled out a remote from his suit jacket and pressed a button, which caused the table to suddenly wheel out of the therapy room and over to the stage. "It took a little time and patience to work with him but soon...he became a real chip off the old block" the Joker sniggered, "say hello to our guests, Lil' J." Slowly but surely, the figure on the table started to move.

Then, he rose up slightly into an awkward sitting position...and started to laugh. It wasn't just any laugh either; it was the same young, nearly high-pitched one that only one person they knew could make...Beast Boy. Within moments, he unhooked his restraints and leapt off the bed; revealing his new appearance to everyone.

His hair was slicked back and turned into a greasy green color, he wore a smaller version of the Joker's suit. But what truly shocked everyone was Beast Boy's new facial features. His forest-green skin was now had a pale white tint to it, his eyes were bulging and had the look of madness in them and his face had a twisted smile plastered on it.

The most troubling thing was the fact that over his lips, everyone could see some traces of red; which could've been either paint, lipstick...or perhaps, blood. Beast Boy stood in place in a sort of hunched position, like an animal that was ready to pounce. When he caught sight of the Titans, the poor lad could only cackle madly; which made everyone's blood run cold.

The combination of these things filled the Dynamic Duo with such rage, it gave them just enough strength to break free of their binds. Afterwards, they threw their switchblades at Joker; who simply ducked down slightly and let them tear through the curtain. Afterwards; he cackled loudly, gave the heroes a "come and get me" gesture, hopped on the table and rode away into another room.

Without a moment's hesitation, Batman and Robin immediately gave chase. But they soon noticed the Doom Patrol and Cyborg following alongside them. "What are you all doing" shouted the Boy Wonder, "you need to stay with the girls and help take down Harley!" Rita glared over at Robin and told him that they were coming along, like it or not.

"Besides, Rae and Star can handle anything that bimbo can throw at 'em" Cyborg added, "they've got things handled." Realizing there was no point in arguing, Robin agreed to let them come; on the condition that they'd all keep on their toes. "We've got this, boys" Rita growled, "besides...I wanna make Joker pay for what he did to my boy!"

(Back to Reality)

At this point in the story, everyone decided to take a quick respite; so that Commissioner Gordon could catch up on what he'd been told. Needless to say, the whole thing was sounding too twisted to be true. "I...I'm at a loss here, folks" Gordon murmured, "I don't know what seems scarier, what Joker did to your friend...or Ms. Farr's mental state afterwards."

Batman and the Titans couldn't help but agree with him; though they themselves weren't with the others, Raven and Starfire could already sense that Elasti-Girl was out for blood. "Trust us, Jim...you don't know the half of it" Robin said simply, "but if you think Beast Boy's condition was the worst part, you haven't heard anything yet." After taking a moment to calm his nerves with some cocoa, he explained how his team followed Joker to the old projection room.

"Why would Joker want to lead you in _there_, of all places" questioned Gordon, "that place was shut down long before the rest of Arkham closed." For a moment or so, no one had answered; which brought the commissioner to realize that they must've seen something terrible there. When everyone had collected their nerves well enough, Robin explained that Joker had another small surprise in store for them; some "home movies."

(First AN: Oh, jeez; something about home movies featuring Joker simply screams bad news, doesn't it? What sort of grim secrets does he have in his films, how will Star and Raven fare against Harley...and will Beast Boy's mind ever be brought back to normal?  
Find out next time in Beast Boy's Last Laugh.)

(Second AN: The mentions of Amadeus Arkham, Quincy Sharp being warden and him later becoming mayor are all references to the Arkham video game series from Rocksteady. I figured that even though this is loosely based on Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, I could sprinkle in some elements from the game series as well.)

(Third AN: the traces of red on Beast Boy's smile are in fact, blood; said bleeding happened during all the days he'd been either beaten or tortured by the Joker. Once he noticed this, the clown thought it would be "funny" to trace a little smile on Beast Boy's lips with his blood. This is a light reference to Joaquin Phoenix's portrayal of Joker. I thought it would be a good element to add here, much like with the Arkham Game Series references.)

(Final AN: The word Star says, after seeing Beast Boy's new look is "X'hal;" which is the name of a goddess the people of Tamaran worship. Think of it as her saying her own version of "my, God.")


	6. Chapter Five: Raven's Rage

Raven's Rage

(The Briefing Room)

Just as Batman was about to continue the story, Raven politely interjected; insisting that she had something she "desperately needed to get off her chest." At first, everyone thought the request sounded a little forward of her; considering how reserved she often was. But from the look on her face alone, Jim could sense she was in dire need of relief and decided to allow it.

"Okay...here it goes" she murmured with a deep sigh, "while the boys were off pursuing the Joker; me, Star and Elasti-Girl were trying our best to get Beast Boy back." Upon hearing this, Commissioner Gordon presumed the task was easy for them; considering that Harley was the only one standing in their way. "You're half right, Sir" Cyborg muttered, "but when the fighting started...that chick, surprisingly enough, managed to put up quite a fight; even for our girls and Elasti-Girl."

Intrigued by this, Gordon asked the team to share more with him. "That is...if you feel up to it, of course" he said calmly, "I don't want to pressure you all or anything." After a while, Raven let out a cleansing breath and agreed to continue.

(Back to the Story)

While the boys gave chase to the Joker, the ladies chose to remain behind; eager to get their hands on Beast Boy and take him home. With this in mind, Raven made an attempt to fly over and get him. But just as she got within range, she was struck in the face with a pie; causing her to fall over backwards.

"Back off, you demon bitch" Harley growled, "I'm not letting you take my lil' baby boy away!" The moment this statement was made, Rita suddenly felt a burning fire of rage swell up inside of her. Not long after that, she grew so large that her head was mere inches away from crashing through the ceiling.

"He is _not_ your baby boy, lady" she seethed venomously, "he is _mine_ and I _will _take him back...EVEN IF I HAVE TO KILL YOU TO GET TO HIM!" With that declaration, Elasti-Girl charged forward like a raging bull; causing the room to quake with her every step. But despite her opponent's gargantuan size, Harley didn't appear all that worried.

"You may be big, lady" she said while dodging Elasti-Girl's swiping hands, "but you know what they say...the bigger they are, the funnier the sound they make when they fall." After saying this, she drew out her comically-sized hammer and slammed it hard against Elasti-Girl's large shin; causing her to almost topple over and hit the ground. The resulting collision then caused Elasti-Girl's form to quickly shrink back down to human size.

Despite this however, Rita appeared relatively unharmed; save for the sore spot where Harley struck her. While taking a moment to massage the sore spot, Harley spat a raspberry in her direction and cartwheeled a few feet away. Meanwhile; Beast Boy, in his current mental state, could only cackle madly at the scene before him.

He watched with blind glee, as his friends and adoptive mother gave chase after Harley. At one point, she turned towards Beast Boy and asked him to get "Mommy's toy" and he had no choice but to obey. "STOP TELLING HIM WHAT TO DO" Raven shouted while blasting Harley in the face with magic, "he takes orders from no one but Robin...and sometimes me."

After being in a daze from the attack for a few seconds, Harley shook her head vigorously and glared at Raven. "No fair" she cried in a bratty voice, "no black magic while fighting, them's the rules!" At first, Raven knew that the clown girl was only saying these things to get under her skin and considered ignoring her.

But with the life of her friend being at risk, these thoughts were immediately ignored and were replaced by the unrelenting desire to get her friend back. Then, at that moment; Starfire suddenly flew overhead and unleashed a flurry of her star bolts down upon Harley. But just as she did before, Harley managed to maneuver her way away from each of the princess' attacks as well.

"Sheesh, you guys call yourselves heroes" she called out mockingly, "I've seen drunken Storm Troopers who have bettuh aim than you!" Infuriated with her opponent's insults, Star bellowed out a vicious battle cry and fired out lasers from her eyes. Alarmed by this sudden surprise attack, Harley moved away as quickly as she could before the beams struck where she stood.

The explosion then sent her flying backward a few feet, causing poor Harley to land unceremoniously against the medical equipment at the edge of the room. When he saw this happen, Beast Boy laughed madly while crying out the words "MOMMY FELL DOWN...MOMMY FELL DOWN" in a mad child-like voice. "Don't laugh at Mommy's pain, Lil J" Harley groaned scoldingly, "did you get my toy like I asked?"

Beast Boy nodded his head obediently, walked over to the table in the center of the room and brought over Harley's trick bazooka; earning a light pat on the head from her. The sight of this display utterly infuriated Rita, despite of the pain she still felt in her leg. With all the strength she could muster, at the moment; she speed-hobbled her way over to Harley and shoved her back roughly.

While this didn't really hurt her opponent, it _did _push Harley within range of Raven and Star; who proceeded to unleash a barrage of attacks on her. With this going on, it granted Elasti-Girl the perfect opportunity to try and get through to Beast Boy...if any part of him still remained. "Beast Boy, snap out of it...please" she begged while shaking the boy's shoulders, "sweetie...please, snap out of it; it's me...Rita."

Again and again, she tried her darndest to get Beast Boy to answer him; only to be met with the same response...mad giggles. "Garfield...please" she begged again with tears in her eyes, "it's Mom, honey...don't you remember me?" The moment she said this, BB's giggling suddenly died down a little and he looked at Elasti-Girl with a sort of confused stare; like the kind a puppy would give its owner.

Poor Rita couldn't help but give a hopeful smile, believing that she may have gotten through to her former ward. Then, ten seconds later; Beast Boy placed his hand beside the flower on his jacket and smiled. "Ha-ha-ha...Sme-he-hell the flo-ho-ho-hower...Mommy" he asked between some faint giggles, "you...want...to sme-he-hell the flower?"

In that moment; poor Rita's mind was so distraught, she couldn't think straight and see that Beast Boy was trying to trick her with something. So, by the power of some kind of "unseen force," she found herself leaning in towards the boy's corsage. At the same time; Raven could clearly understand what was about to happen and, at the second to last moment, placed a barrier between the two of them.

The moment this happened, Rita could then see what looked like toxic fluid spew out of the flower's center hitting against the barrier. While this would normally cause normal materials to burn or melt, the magical barrier remained fully in-tact; much to Harley's annoyance. "NO FAIR" she screeched bitterly, "earlier, I said no Black Magic...wasn't anybody listenin'?!"

After this, she was prepared to fire off her bazooka at Raven...but decided against it. "Ya know...I've been hoggin' all the fun this whole time" she sighed, "I think it's time for my lil' boy to have a try." With that said, she tossed the bazooka into Beast Boy's unsuspecting arms and smiled at him.

"Go ahead, sweetie" Harley said while kissing his forehead, "blast that freak to Kingdom Come; just like Mommy would do." Once again, Elasti-Girl fumed at the sight of Harley showing "motherly affections" towards Beast Boy and readied herself into attack position. "Get away from him, you clown whore" she cried venomously, "touch him again and so help me, I'll..."

Before she could finish her rant, an explosion rang out and Elasti-Girl's face was suddenly enveloped by a long piece of red fabric. At first, she tried to rip it off with her bare hands but she could barely make even the smallest on it. _"Damn it all" _Elasti-Girl thought bitterly, _"this is the same thing that tied up Batman and Robin earlier, isn't it?"_

With this thought in mind, she realized that there was no way she could simply rip it off. That was when she considered growing super large again, thinking the band would tear in the process. But as she attempted to do so, she could feel the pain in her shin surging slightly; causing her to fall to her knees.

As if sensing her pain, Raven made an attempt to hurry over to Elasti-Girl's side; while also channeling a sort of white healing aura in her hands. But just as she was within range of her comrade, Raven heard a shot ring out behind her. Just before she could create a barrier to shield herself, Raven's entire body was cocooned in the red bands; the same kind that covered Elasti-Girl's mouth.

Once wrapped up, Raven fell to the ground and skidded across the floor before she crashed against the side wall of the kitchen stage; almost toppling it over. With a dazed groan, Raven rolled over and tried to get a good look at whoever attacked her. Much to her surprise however, it wasn't Harley holding the bazooka; it was Beast Boy.

"Why the heck did you shoot me, Gar" she shouted, "I'm your friend!" The moment she said this, Raven could hear the echoes of her common sense screaming inside her head. It wasn't B's fault that he shot her, he was still under Joker's twisted influence and had no control over his actions.

_"I've had fights against Dr. Light that went easier than this" _Raven moaned mentally, _"how am I supposed to fight one of my own teammates?"_ While lost in thought, Harley sauntered over to Beast Boy's side and patted his head "lovingly;" congratulating him on his good shot. Then, she turned towards Raven and glared down icy daggers at her.

"I told ya before...no black magic" she murmured in a scolding voice, "and after that third strike, I say it's time for Mommy to lay down the law." With that thought in mind, she drew out her hammer and held it high over her head, ready to slam it down upon Raven. But then, a blast of green energy disintegrated the hammer head; leaving only a partially burnt stick in its place.

"HEY! That was my favorite hammer" Harley shouted, "one of youse is gonna pay for the replacement!" In response to this demand; a star bolt suddenly slammed into her, sending her flying sideways. Not long after, Starfire hovered over towards the fallen criminal; her eyes blazing green with righteous fury.

Raven smiled slightly with delight; knowing that, at least _one _of them was still left standing. "You hurt my friends, stole another from me and turned him into a freakish giggling imp" the Tamaranean princess seethed, "now, you shall pay!" Upon saying this, Star's fists began to glow a bright shade of green; which to Raven, meant that things were going to get messy soon.

But just as Star prepared to attack Harley with her star bolts, she was suddenly struck in the face by something...sweet. Like a mad jackrabbit, Beast Boy came bounding over towards his former friend/teammate and slammed a pie square into her face; blinding her. "Hope you like the pie, Princess" he cackled madly, "it's Mommy's specialty...lemon meringue with whipped napalm crème!"

The moment he said this, both Elasti-Girl and Raven gasped in alarm; urging Starfire not to charge up her eye beams. But their pleas came too little too late; with a fierce growl in her throat, the crème from the pie that covered Star's face slowly started to boil. As a result, the napalm swiftly ignited and the pie (quite literally) blew up in Star's face; sending her flying through a wall.

"Nice job, baby" Harley said with pride, "Mommy and Daddy taught you well these past few months." Beast Boy, still in his mad state, only giggled gleefully in reply to her words; which further infuriated the three heroines. "Stop treating him like he's your child" Raven growled, "we _will _stop you and we _will _take him back home with us!"

Harley simply giggled in reply, proclaiming that the heroes have all "lost the fight already." "Mistuh J will make short work outta Bat-Brain, Bird Boy and the other mooks; soon" she decreed, "and as for you three...well, it's not like you're much of a threat to us now." With her "victory" presumably close at hand, Harley continued to prance about and brag to her fallen opponents.

"Just think...once we're done here, Mistuh J and I will be home free" she giggled mockingly, "I can't wait to teach Lil J all the fun stuff I've got planned." Much to the heroes disgust; this "fun stuff" (as _she_ called it) consisted mainly of crimes like larceny, theft, arson and general mayhem. "Beast Boy would never do anything of the sort" roared Starfire after recovering from her collision earlier, "he is a hero!"

Harley simply wagged her finger in the princess' direction, while also clicking her tongue in disapproval. "Weren't you and your friends listenin' earlier" she murmured, "your lil' pet, Beast Boy is gonzo; Lil' J is here now and there ain't no goin' back for him." Upon hearing these words, Beast Boy let out another mad laughing fit; much to the ladies horror.

But as Raven got a good look at him, she saw something that made her blood boil. In the corners of his eyes, she could see painful tears welling up; in spite of the laughter he was making. It was then that she realized just how much pain Beast Boy was currently in. Then, at that moment; Raven swore she heard the sound of his voice calling out to her; albeit softly.

As she took another look at her giggling friend and teammate, the young empath saw him coughing out his laughs this time around. Naturally, she knew this would happen; given how much he had been cackling already. But every moment or so, she thought she heard him croaking out something to her.

After a while, Elasti-Girl and Starfire could hear this as well and wondered what Beast Boy was trying to do or say. Finally, after letting out one final cough (the kind one gives out when their throat is sore;) everyone could see his tears flowing more freely down his pale face. At this point, his giggling sounded softer and more restrained.

But in-between giggles, the ladies could hear him whispering two simple words to them; "he-he-he-help...me-he-he-he-he." That did it; after seeing Beast Boy crying and hearing his murmur of distress, Raven was finally pushed over the edge. Soon, her normally beautiful violet eyes shifted into four slits; each one blazing red with rage.

Afterwards; she bellowed out a vicious roar and, with her rage now enhancing her magic, broke free from her binds. Now, over the years working as Joker's "sidekick;" Harley had faced off against powerful metahumans before. She squared off with Black Canary, Wonder Woman and even managed to survive a tussle with Superman on one or two occasions.

But she had never held her own against a super-powerful, rage induced half-demon sorceress before. Thus, there was only one course of action she knew she had to take in a situation like this..._RUN LIKE HELL! _After snatching up the broken handle of her beloved hammer, she was determined to try and get as far away from her opponent as she could.

"C'mon, sweetie; it's time to go" Harley murmured while taking Beast Boy's hand in hers, "we'll try our luck in Metropolis next." The poor lad could only offer up a mad Cheshire cat-like grin and nod in silent reply. But before she could move even the slightest inch, a black tendril suddenly lunged forward and snatched Harley by her ankles; pulling her away from her "son."

With a fearful yelp, she braved a look over her shoulder to see what was happening. What she found next was a sight so horrifying, it almost made her heart stop. Looming overhead of her was Raven, her eyes blazing with fury and dozens of strange magical tendrils seeping out from beneath her cloak.

"What the...WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON" Harley shrieked in horror, "WHAT ARE YA GOING TO DO WITH ME?!" Before the poor girl could speak any further, four more tendrils coiled themselves around Harley; making absolutely sure she could not escape. Then, they proceeded to drag her forward to what looked like a shadowy void beneath Raven's cloak.

"C'MON, YA FREAK" she cried desperately, "KNOCK IT OFF WITH THE TRICKS, THIS AIN'T FUNNY!" Much to Harley's horror, Raven simply glared down at her with an icy stare. Then, she eased herself down to the clownish girl and growled in her ears. "The time for jokes is over, mortal" Raven said in a voice that was a mix of her own and a demon's, "you hurt my friend and now...you will suffer!"

With that said, she resumed in dragging poor Harley forward; ignoring all the screams of surrender she let out. At one point, she turned towards Beast Boy and begged him to save her. But due to his current state of mind, he could only laugh maniacally; as if this were all a game.

Slowly but surely, Harley could feel the coldness of the black void enveloping her body. Meanwhile; Starfire, upon seeing what was about to happen, flew forward and cried out for Raven to stop herself. At first, the young sorceress ignored her friend's calls; choosing only to relish in her enemy's suffering.

But then, a green star bolt suddenly slammed against her body; briefly shocking her out of her angry state. "STARFIRE...WHAT THE HELL" Raven shouted, "why did you blast me like..." Before she could finish her tirade, Raven suddenly heard the sound of wild whimpering and crying.

She looked down and saw Harley lying facedown on the floor. Alarmed, Raven suddenly came to realize just what was about to happen and hovered over to Harley's side. As if thinking the same thing, Star and Elasti-Girl rushed over to join her.

For a moment or so, the ladies simply stood over Harley's form; listening to the whimpers she would let out. Then, after taking in a nervous gulp; Raven reached towards her shoulder and flipped Harley over on her back. Much to the trio's horror, the poor girl looked as though she had been gripped by the fingers of Death himself.

Her face appeared drained of life, her body shivered like it had just walked through a winter storm and her eyes had a mad look of fear in them. To Starfire; she had only seen one other villain with this kind of look, after experiencing one of Raven's "episodes..." Doctor Light. After a while, the ladies suddenly heard Harley mutter out mad babbling of some kind.

But upon listening more closely, they could hear her clearly murmuring "s-s-so dark...make it stop, p-p-please...I want my mommy!" Needless to say, it looked as though Harley was down for the count. But after what happened, it didn't quite feel like a victory to the ladies.

"I'm...I'm sorry, girls" Raven murmured shamefully, "I just...after seeing how Quinn was manipulating Beast Boy and seeing him cry just moments ago, something inside me just...snapped!" After hearing what she had just said, it made poor Raven feel even more disgusted with herself. But before she could sink any deeper into her shame, Raven suddenly felt Starfire envelop her into a hug.

Unlike her usual embraces, this one felt softer yet still filled with great love. "Do not despair, friend" murmured Starfire, "I was close to letting _my_ own rage get the best of me...as was Friend Elasti-Girl." Upon hearing them mention her hero name, Rita suddenly let out a muffled cry of distress; while also gesturing at the wrappings still tied around her face.

"Hold on, Elasti-Girl" Raven murmured, "we've got you covered." After that, the girls went over to her side and proceeded to gingerly remove the bands from Elasti-Girl's mouth. Once free, she let out a few dry and harsh coughs; desperate to get some air into her lungs again.

Once she recovered, fifteen seconds later; Rita cast a stoic gaze over towards Raven. The two of them remained locked in a stare-down for a couple of seconds, until Rita broke the silence in asking "does that kind of thing happen a lot with you?" It didn't take long for Raven to understand what she meant, which led her to respond with a "so-so" hand gesture.

"Do not be too harsh with Raven, Ma'am" Star pleaded softly, "due to being half-demon, her father's influence cursed Raven's powers to destroy anything around her; should her emotions become unruly." At first, Elasti-Girl said nothing in response; which made Raven all the more nervous. After a while, the elder female looked her square in the eye and asked one thing from her; "have you ever used your powers on Garfield in the same way you just did with Harley?"

For a moment or so, Raven didn't know how to respond; fearing that whatever she said would cause Rita to fear her...or worse, hate her. But after a while, she decided to come clean and admitted that Beast Boy _did_ upset her on one or two occasions. "But all I've mostly done to him is give him wedgies, blow up his tofu eggs in his face and...maybe tossed him out a window from the tower, on rare occasions" she revealed hesitantly, "but I'd never do this to him!"

Alas, all Raven's defense seemed to do was make Rita feel rather suspicious of her. Of course, she couldn't blame her; even _she_ herself found her own behavior questionable at times. But before she could think any more on that topic, Raven suddenly heard Starfire give out a shrill whistle; snapping her out of her daze.

"My friends, I know you are both quite shaken from this battle" she said frantically, "but I fear I must inform you that..._BEAST BOY HAS GONE MISSING!" _Upon hearing this news; the two ladies turned towards the side and saw that Beast Boy had indeed, scurried away. At the same time, they realized just what he might be doing; Beast Boy intended to tell the Joker about Harley's defeat.

"We have to find him before he gets to that crazy clown" Elasti-Girl ordered, "hopefully, the boys have found him first." With that, she urged the two female Titans to follow her lead; each of them desperate to find their friend before anything worse would happen. But little did they realize; soon, in another area of the asylum...things would soon become quite grim.

(First AN: The battle against Harley has been won; now, comes the final battle with Joker. Will our heroes be able to stop him and save Beast Boy or will the latter two have the last laugh, in the end? Tune in for the next chapter, to find out)

(Second AN: I confess, I'm not much of a comic reader; be it DC, Marvel, Dark Horse or whatever else. I mostly know of these characters from their animated and live-action incarnations. But in spite of that, I do believe Harley _has_ squared off against super-powered beings before.

If I'm wrong, I'm sorry; this is just my interpretation on how she would fight against such heroes)

(Third AN: Speaking of Harley, her crying out "no Black Magic" against Raven was loosely inspired by what someone says when they jinx a friend. I figured it would've been the kind of thing someone like Harley would say, if she were up against a magic-based hero)

(Final AN: Most of you may already have a clear understanding on why Harley calls herself Mommy, when she speaks to Beast Boy. But for anyone who's confused, the reason _Rita/Elasti-Girl _does it is because she's his _adoptive_ mother; back when he was part of the Doom Patrol. Of all the members of the team, she was the only one to treat him like a person; which makes Beast Boy's situation with Joker all the more painful for her.

Sorry if this feels like I'm stating the obvious; I just thought I'd point it out, in case anyone got confused)


	7. Chapter Six: Secrets and Punchlines

Secrets and Punchlines

Back with the boys, they were still in pursuit of the Joker; who seemed to have vanished somehow. But ever the alert ones, Batman and Robin encouraged everyone to be on their guards. After seeing what became of Beast Boy, they refused to let the same fate happen to anyone else.

Then, all of a sudden; they heard Joker's laughter echoing far down the hall and they resumed their chase. In time, they found themselves in another part of the Operating Theatre. Unlike the previous room, this one was outfitted to look like some sort of movie theatre; complete with an already downed film screen.

The whole time Batman, the male Doom Patrol members and the two Titans were keeping watch for Joker. They couldn't help but wonder why the room was outfitted this way. At that moment the sounds of loud intercom feedback noise broke them out of their train of thought.

Not long after that, Joker's voice spoke up through the intercom. _"What's wrong, boys; no cheesy hero one-liners, no death threats"_ he muttered teasingly, _"then...perhaps it's time for some home movies; with narration provided by _moi_."_ No sooner had he said this, a light suddenly flashed on; causing the heroes to take defensive positions.

It was then that they saw it was nothing more than the glow of a film projector shining its light upon the screen. Not long after that, a black-and-white film reel began to play. In the background, everyone could hear a sort of 1950's style jazz melody playing; which made it feel like a true "home movie."

Little did they suspect that this film was actually the tale of Beast Boy's capture. As it played; someone held up a cue card at the screen screen, one that read "Precious Family Memories" in sloppy paint writing. Once it moved away, the heroes saw Joker's hand gesturing for the camera to get him in view.

Once the cameraman did just that, the Joker soon came into view; who was dressed in a sort of lab coat. Beside him was a table covered with all manner of beakers, test tubes, chemical spills, surgical and repair tools and even a dirty-looking plunger. Why Joker had the last item with him there, Robin chose not to think about it.

_"I'll begin with how I peeled back the layers of Green Bean's mind" _Joker's voice stated, _"seems he had more brains than you Titans gave him credit for. HA-HA!" _The next image to appear on the screen was Beast Boy, who appeared strapped tight onto a table. _"Oh! He tried to put up a fight, at first" _Joker stated, _"for such a string bean, he actually gave us all a hard time."_

After this, the camera showed Joker standing next to a grill; dressed in a "Kiss the Cook" apron and chef's hat. At first glance, the scene resembled a typical outdoor barbecue. But Cyborg quickly realized that it was anything but that.

Next, after "Home Movies" Joker gave the camera a little wave; he opened the grill and started licking his lips with delight. At first, Robotman prayed that the clown was just going to force-feed Gar some hamburgers. But what Joker brought out instead was a pair of metal clamps, which were attached to long cables.

Said cables were connected to what looked like an old machine, one used for "shock therapy." The heroes watched in anxious horror, as Joker attached the straps to Beast Boy's table. Afterwards, he flipped the switch and the green teen's body lurched painfully; as volts of electricity surged through him.

"_You and your friends would've been proud to see him show some strength for a change, Bird Boy"_ Joker said smugly through the intercom, _"but all too soon; the serums, shocks and beatings took their toll on him and the dear lad began to share such delicious secrets with me; secrets that are _mine_ alone to know...Richard."_ Upon hearing him mention his true name, Robin's fists clenched tightly and his eyes narrowed in anger. Meanwhile, Cyborg was at a loss on what Joker said; wondering who "Richard" was.

_"What's wrong, Mr. Stone" _the clown chortled, _"didn't your great leader ever tell you about this?"_ Just like Robin; the moment he heard Joker say his real name, Cyborg's whole body tensed up fearfully. This only caused Joker to feel all the more joyous about things.

_"It's true, kiddies; I know everything" _he said bluntly, _"I know of Robo-Man's lil' accident on the racetrack, how Mr. Trainor got his bandages, how your 'great leader,' Dr. Caulder was secretly behind all the 'accidents' the Doom Patrol suffered; I know it all!"_ The whole time he spoke, the heroes soon found themselves feeling dirty and exposed. The worst of it all was when he brought up Raven and Star's little "secrets."

Robin was just thankful the girls weren't with them to hear all of this. Of course, none of them really blamed Beast Boy for spilling the beans. After witnessing what Joker did to him on the film and what he'd been turned him into, they believed it was a miracle Beast Boy survived it all. _"You know what the best part is" _Joker inquired suddenly over the intercom, _"the cherry on the top was when I got to learn about ol' Brucie."_

That was it; the final nail had been driven in the coffin, the final skeleton was let out of the closet. At first, the team seemed oblivious; until Dr. Caulder cleared the air by mentioning the name Bruce Wayne. It was then that the likes of Cyborg, Robotman and Negative Man were able to put all the pieces together.

"Wait...so, Robin; your former partner...is Bruce Wayne" exclaimed the bandaged-faced hero softly, "as in 'Billionaire Playboy,' Bruce Wayne...that's NUTS!" Alas, the Dynamic Duo didn't respond to his outcries; their minds feeling too clouded with hate and resentment to hear him. These thoughts however, were more directed towards Joker; who continued to rub his "victory" in the heroes' collective faces.

_"But you know what...I find all this to be rather anticlimactic, in a way"_ sighed the "Clown Prince of Crime" bitterly, _"kind of like after a kid peeks in on his Christmas presents days before the big morning." _Rather than question his word choices, the boys remained still as stones; their faces contorted with looks of anger upon them. As if sensing their "confusion," Joker decided to elaborate to them about his "dilemma."

_"Truth is; thanks to green bean spilling his guts, I now know the truth" _he sighed dejectedly, _"behind all your gadgets, powers and...whatever else; you're just a bunch of schlubs either trying to fit in with society or crying for your mommies and daddies."_ The moment this statement was made, the heroes' anger had already reached its collective boiling point. One more push and they would be poised to go ballistic on someone.

Regardless of this, Joker continued to rub salt into their wounds from above them. "Fact is, all this would seem funny; if it weren't so pathetic" he said smugly, "oh, you know...what the heck; I'll laugh anyway. HA-HA-HA-HA!" As Joker stood in the projection room, laughing mockingly at the heroes; he failed to notice a bat-like shadow soaring towards him.

Within seconds, the Caped Crusader came crashing through the glass window; spilling shards all around the floor. Upon making his landing, Batman then proceeded to beat Joker senselessly around the room; knocking over the projector in the process. Not long after, he held the mad clown up in the air by his shirt and glared daggers at him.

Rather than be intimidated by this, however; Joker only smiled at him while blood tricked down from his bottom lip. "There's no need to be rough, Bats" he choked out mockingly, "if you don't like the movie, I've got slides." Infuriated by the comment, Batman summoned up all the strength he could muster and threw Joker over his shoulder and out the projector window.

The clown bounced and smashed painfully against a wooden display on the stage beneath him, until he landed unceremoniously onto the floor. As he slowly tried to get back onto his feet, Joker felt his throat being crushed by the grip of a thick metal hand. After letting out a cough, he saw that it was Robotman taking hold of him and he did not look happy (despite the emotionless expression on his metal face.)

With a fierce growl in his throat, Robotman lifted Joker off the ground and slammed him up against the wooden stage display. "I'm gonna break you in half, clown" he grumbled viciously, "but not before everyone else here has had their shot first!" Not long after this; Cyborg readied his Sonic Cannon and aimed it at Joker's head, while Robin drew out a sharpened Bird-a-Rang from his belt.

Batman meanwhile, choose to let his fists do the talking and Dr. Caulder readied a laser gun from the left arm of his high-tech wheelchair. But surprisingly (or rather, unsurprisingly) Joker wasn't the least bit afraid of his situation. "Oh! Come now, gents" he chortled, "if you had the guts to do what you're suggesting, you would've done it _ages ago;_ I, on the other hand..."

After distracting the heroes with a little sleight of hand, Joker used one of his hands to squirt acid from out of his flower. Said acid would've almost hit Robotman in the face...or worse, if he hadn't dodged it at the last second. Unfortunately, this also caused him to accidentally release Joker; who proceeded to stab Batman in the leg with a switchblade from his other sleeve.

Once free, Joker proceeded to attack the remaining heroes. He grabbed hold of Robin and threw him against Negative Man, he successfully nailed Cyborg's cannon with his flower's acid; shorting it out and as for the Chief...all he did was comically push him off his wheelchair. "C'mon now" Joker groaned, "I thought I was fighting heroes, not school kids in costumes."

As the heroes desperately tried to recover, they suddenly heard the soft sounds of Beast Boy's crazed laughter echo through the room. After letting out a soft groan, Dr. Caulder saw his former teammate standing over him; the mad smile still plastered on his face. "Garfield...please" he murmured, "snap out of it, this isn't you."

Much to his dismay, Beast Boy's only reply was a fit of mad laughter; which made Joker all the more proud. "You've lost, boys" Joker said cruelly while approaching Batman, "the kid is _mine_ now and the last sounds you will hear will be our laughter; as we leave you all for dead!" After this, he took hold of Batman with one hand and drew out his clownish gun with the other.

"Here ya go, Junior" he said merrily while tossing the weapon into Beast Boy's hands, "take your pick and deliver the final punchline." As the young Titan took hold of the gun's holster, both the Doom Patrol and Titans desperately begged him not to shoot any of them. Alas, their cries went unheard; as the poor boy pulled the trigger.

Much to their relief, the only thing that came out of the gun was a flag bearing the word "BANG" in bold red lettering. But Robin quickly reminded them not to be fooled by Joker's tricks. "Good start, boy" Joker snickered, "now...really let 'em have it!" As Beast Boy stood there with gun in hand, cackling madly; he began shuffling his aim between each of the heroes.

The whole time he did this, everyone could clearly see poor Garfield's face contort into a painful grimace; as if he were trying to force himself not to continue on. "Ee-hee-hee-hee-ny...meeny, miny mo; catch...a t-t-tiger by the...t-t-toe" he murmured between stifled giggles, "if he...h-h-hollers, let him go; eeny...meany...miney...MO!" With that final word, Beast Boy pulled the trigger; causing the "BANG" flag to fire out like a bullet.

Much to the heroes' surprise, however; the flag didn't hit any of _them. _Instead, it struck Joker straight through his heart; sending him flying backward onto a large prop building block. In that moment, all time seemed to stand still and no one knew what to say or what to think.

Finally, the silence was broken by the sounds of Joker's pained coughs. "Hey...you d-d-damn brat" he muttered, "that's not funny...that's not...fun..." Before he could finish his statement, Joker let out one last painful cough and fell face first on the floor; dead as a mackerel. In that moment, the unimaginable had finally happened; the presumably "invincible" Clown Prince of Crime was finally gone.

Not long after this, Beast Boy fell into an even bigger fit of mad laughter than before. But then, his crazed smile slowly faded away and his laughter soon gave way to loud sobs. Eventually; Beast Boy dropped the gun, fell onto his knees and let all the tears he bottled up flow freely down his cheeks.

After what felt like an eternity of torture at the Joker's hands, all the pain he felt from it all was finally being let out. But the clown's death didn't bring him any joy. Instead, he felt ashamed in himself; feeling as though he betrayed his "hero code" by taking someone's life.

Meanwhile, the heroes watched him in both sadness and sorrow; wishing nothing more than to take the pain away from Beast Boy. Then, at that moment; Elasti-Girl, Raven and Starfire soon arrived. "What's going on" questioned the eldest female impatiently while helping the Chief back into his chair, "what happened here, where's Gar!?"

Without saying a single word, the boys gestured towards the aforementioned teen; whose face was now moist with tears. Upon seeing the gun on the floor before him and Joker lying dead on the other side of the room, everything became clear to Elasti-Girl. Without a moment's hesitation, she rushed over to her adoptive son and cradled him in her arms; while Raven and Star tended to the others.

"Shh...It's okay, baby; it's all over" Rita whispered, "Mommy's here." For what felt like ages, she held Beast Boy close to her; offering only a few kind words and nuzzles to help calm him down. Eventually, the GCPD arrived at the scene and the officers were briefed on everything that transpired.

(Back to Reality)

Outside of the story, Commissioner Gordon's desk was now covered with used tissues; all of which were used by the Titans to dry their tears. Alas, it did little to help calm them; as did recounting the events of the incident. "You already know what happened next, Jim" Batman muttered softly, "the last thing we did was bury Joker's body deep beneath Arkham...which felt rather fitting for him."

Gordon, who was currently rubbing his temples to ease a migraine headache, did everything he could to process the heroes' story. "Gotta say, it's all a lot to take in" he murmured with a deep sigh, "especially the...you know what." It didn't take long for the heroes to understand what Jim was referring to and they all stared at him with stone-cold gazes.

"We've been through so much, Mr. Gordon...you have no idea" Cyborg groaned, "so we're _imploring_ you...please, keep our secrets as that; secrets?" Without missing a beat, Jim smiled warmly at the heroes and gave them a soft nod in reply; silently assuring them he'd keep his word. "There's just one thing that puzzles me" he said suddenly, "whatever happened to your friend, after you saved him?"

That did it; after doing her best to keep in control during the debriefing, this simple question was what finally broke Raven. With her eyes squeezed tight, her fists clenched at her sides and her grayish pale face scarlet with sorrow; she opened her mouth and screamed. She wailed, sobbed and shrieked as loudly as she could; pouring all of her anguish into every yell.

At the same time, this led to Raven's powers activating; which then led to the entire briefing room being encased in a dark aura. Soon; filing cabinets flew every which way, papers were scattered about like snowflakes and Commissioner Gordon's desk was almost slammed through the ceiling. Eventually, Starfire got close enough to grab hold of Raven's shoulders and lightly shake her.

"RAVEN, PLEASE...CALM YOURSELF" she shouted desperately, "I KNOW YOU ARE HURTING, WE ARE AS WELL...BUT ALL THIS DESTRUCTION WILL NOT BRING OUR FRIEND BACK!" For a moment or so, Raven's power continued to surge throughout the room; causing almost everyone to find cover wherever they could. "DO YOU NOT HEAR ME, RAVEN" Starfire shrieked, "NONE OF THIS WILL HELP MAKE THINGS BETTER!"

Just as things seemed to be getting worse; Raven, at last stopped crying and the black aura swiftly faded away. A split-second later, everything that was being thrown about or held up by the aura came crashing to the ground. Not long after this, Raven threw herself into Star's arms and sobbed wildly.

But this wasn't like how she cried before; this time, she was a tad more in control. "I...I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" murmured Raven, "I just...why did we have to lose him _twice!?_" Feeling both confused yet intrigued by this display, Commissioner Gordon cleared his throat and politely asked what brought on the young empath's episode.

"I'm afraid...that's a whole different story, Jim" sighed Robin, "and I warn you; if you thought what Joker did to Beast Boy was nuts, what happened after practically destroyed us."

(First AN: Whooo doggie; just when you've found yourself out of the mess, you're pulled right back in. After what they saw Joker do to Beast Boy; what could've happened next that "destroyed the team," as Robin claimed? Find out next time, as we come to the second to last chapter of Beast Boy's Last Laugh)

(Second AN: For anyone wondering about how Beast Boy knew Batman's true identity, some would imagine that Robin might've shared the information with him; after the Titans team was first formed. As for the Doom Patrol's names; after living and fighting crime with them, he came to know about who _they _were and what each of their lives used to be.

To make a long story short; if y'all think he was weak to spill the beans the way he did, you haven't paid attention to what BB had been through.)

(Final AN: As I said in the first Author's note, there are two more chapters left in this story. After the next one, there will be an epilogue and it will all be over. I'm sorry in advance, if this fic feels too short to end it so soon.

But bear in mind, this was all based upon the flashback scene from the Batman Beyond movie; which lasts about ten minutes or so. I just hope that, once everything _does _full circle, you'll all like how it ends. Just thought I'd put that out there, in case anyone had issues.)


	8. Chapter Seven: The Last Laugh

The Last Laugh

After taking some time to calm down, the Titans were composed enough to continue with the remainder of their story. But at the same time, they couldn't help but tense up slightly; as if their minds and bodies were begging for them not to say anything else. It took every ounce of strength each of them had left to continue on.

"Once Joker had been...dealt with, we took Beast Boy back to the Tower" Robin murmured, "we hoped that being at home again would help ease his mind...boy, were we wrong."

(Flashback to Titans Tower)

After bringing him back to Jump City, the Titans' ship landed on the roof of their "T" shaped home. Normally, the team would be buzzing with joy after a successful mission. But in this case, there was very little to celebrate over. Not only had they come dangerously close to losing Beast Boy but the Joker's demise still left them feeling quite dirty.

Speaking of whom; after all the tears he'd shed back at Arkham, the little guy became exhausted and fell asleep in Elasti-Girl's arms. As much as he didn't want to tear the two apart, Robin softly pleaded for her permission to take him home. He thought that being back in more familiar surroundings would help Beast Boy forget about what he went through.

In that moment, Elasti-Girl found herself horribly conflicted. On one hand; she didn't want to leave her surrogate son's side, after everything that happened. But on the other, she realized that he didn't have quite as many pleasant memories at Dayton Manor like he did with the Titans. So, after going against every single maternal instinct she had; Elasti-Girl consented.

"Hold up there, Rita" Robotman interjected, "we'll let the kid go back with you...on the condition that we come and visit periodically." Before any of the Titans had the chance to object, Dr. Caulder gave them a sullen look; which immediately silenced them. "Please, he's our teammate...our family" he begged, "I fear we won't be able to sleep at night without knowing he's improving even slightly."

At first, the Doom Patrol believed their wishes would be swiftly denied. But after only a half minute's consideration, the Titans agreed; realizing that Beast Boy was just as important to _them_ as he was to their team. Satisfied with this decision, Elasti-Girl gave her sleeping ward one final kiss upon his cheek before gently placing him into the ship.

"Have a safe trip home, sweetheart" she whispered, "we'll see you real soon...I love you." While still too tired to speak clearly; in response to her words, Beast Boy suddenly let out a soft yet gentle moan (like a dog does in his sleep.) Then, everyone looked down and saw a smile creep over on his face.

But this wasn't the twisted Joker smile he had before, much to their relief. Though small; this was one of Beast Boy's true, genuine grins. Seeing this brought a tear to not only Elasti-Girl's eyes but some of the Titans as well.

"That's right, B...dream those sweet dreams" Cyborg whispered, "you've more than earned it." With that done; both hero teams said their goodbyes, climbed aboard their ships and headed off for home.

(Back to Reality)

By this point in the story, Commissioner Gordon was beginning to appear more relaxed; as if he were expecting an eventual happy ending to it. "So, what happened after you got back to the city" he asked, "did everything return to normal, in time?" As much as it pained them to do so, the team responded with a collective and sullen shake of their heads; which greatly confused the officer.

"Almost three weeks passed by since we brought Beast Boy home" Raven murmured, "but he barely showed signs of his old self, if at all." From here, she explained every attempt she and the team made to help cheer Beast Boy up. These ideas included but were not limited to Robin offering to play video games alongside him, Starfire offering to take him to the comic shop on her next venture to the "Mall of Shopping," Cyborg offering to cook up a vegan-friendly meal for him and Raven doing _her_ attempt at one of his corniest jokes.

But much to their shock and disappointment, each of these ideas was met with the same result; silence. More than that; Beast Boy seemed to spend every day sitting in the Common Room, staring blankly out into space. On the rare occasion the team _did _hear him make any noises, Beast Boy would only let out a soft laugh or two.

This was odd for two specific reasons, the first one being that this particular laugh sounded like a softer version of his Joker-style laugh; which made even Raven's blood run cold. The second reason this alarmed the team was due to the fact he would let out this laugh at the strangest of times. This would occur during briefing sessions, meal times even when Raven was in the middle of meditation.

"In time, the Doom Patrol came to visit the tower and we explained to them what was going on" murmured the empath, "that's when Dr. Caulder asked me to help examine Beast Boy." Intrigued by her words, Batman asked what was done to perform the examination. "Nothing invasive, if _that's_ what you're thinking" Cyborg stated, "truth is, they used a combination of Raven's powers and those from Mento's...helmet thing."

Upon mentioning this, Commissioner Gordon asked how the team gained possession of their former leader's helm. "You already know of Rita's divorce from Steve Dayton/Mento, correct" Robin asked, "well, much like in any divorce; she gained possession of a good chunk of her former husband's goods." This bit of news caused Jim to tense up; due to him experiencing such circumstances himself, long ago.

"Among the things Elasti-Girl took ownership of were the Mansion, her share of the Dayton Industries funds and of course, Mento's helmet" Robin listed, "she especially wanted to keep the third example away from his hands." Both Gordon and Batman nodded slightly in understanding and gestured for him to continue. "With Dr. Caulder using Mento's helmet and Raven using her telepathy, they were able to peer into Beast Boy's mind" Robin stated, "what they found was...utterly nightmarish."

Though they both already had a good idea on the answer, Batman and Commissioner Gordon asked Raven what it was she saw. "To put it in a word...everything" murmured the empath, "not just the torture Joker put him through but every other tragedy he suffered." From here, she told them of every atrocity Beast Boy had been subjected to.

These ranged from how he gained his powers, the death of his parents, losing a guardian to a horrific civil war in Africa, being forced to steal for crooks the moment he arrived in the U.S., almost dying from abuse at the hands of a man named Nicholas Galtry...the list seemed aimless. "The worst part was discovering the reason behind B's die-hard vegetarianism" Cyborg muttered while clutching at his gut, "apparently, those crooks _forced _him into eating meat; including a human hand!" To say that this reveal disgusted everyone would be an understatement.

Regardless; after taking a moment to calm down, Commissioner Gordon confessed how Beast Boy was able to appear so happy every day. "I surmised that this part of him was a sort of...coping mechanism" Raven stated, "kind of like with me and how I often appear rather deadpan around others." Upon saying this out loud, Raven suddenly shivered; realizing too late just how much alike she and Beast Boy truly were.

"Anyway...Once we were finished, Dr. Caulder gave us the 411" she murmured, "apparently, due to all the torture he endured; Beast Boy was left with severe mental and emotional damage." Before either Gordon or Batman could comment on her stating the obvious, Raven immediately stopped them, demanding that they let her finish. "As part of this trauma, Niles told us that Beast Boy was experiencing what medical science classified as the Pseudobulbar Affect" she explained, "or to put it simply, he was developing a sort of laughing disorder."

With this reveal, the police commissioner had a full understanding of what happened. Due to his psychological trauma and being subjected to Joker's toxins, poor Beast Boy now laughed at any random time of the day; even if he didn't want to. "With this information; our team and the Doom Patrol agreed to work together, once more" Starfire stated, "we hoped that our combined efforts would help ease friend Beast Boy's suffering."

When asked what steps were taken to try and help the young hero, the Titans answered with "basic things." These basic things included meditation sessions with Raven, walks around the tower's island with Starfire, going out to the arcade with Cyborg; anything that might help calm him down. Alas, whenever BB _did_ laugh; it didn't feel genuine and it troubled everyone.

"When this was brought to my attention, I simply told the team 'just keep doing what you're doing...he'll recover, someday" Robin murmured bitterly, "boy, was I wrong in the end...and I paid the price for my ignorance."

(Flashback to Titans Tower)

One night, Cyborg and Robin decided to head out to the city and pick up a pizza for dinner. This left Raven and Starfire in charge at the tower for the time being. "B's upstairs in his room, chillin' out" the half-robot teen explained, "he should be okay until we get back."

Though Robin sided with his friend on his assumption, he still encouraged the girls to check on him every once in a while. "He's taking a much needed nap, right now" he whispered, "but don't be afraid to drop by his door and ask if he's okay." With that said, Robin followed Cyborg into the garage and got into the T-Car.

Meanwhile, in another area of the Tower; Beast Boy was sitting up at the edge of his bed, rubbing his face in anguish. He truly _did _try and take a nap, upon their return home; just like Robin said. But each time he tried, the image of Joker's face laughing at him kept haunting his subconscious.

To add insult to injury, there were periods where Beast Boy found himself involuntarily laughing in his sleep. Sometimes, these were soft giggles; the kind one makes when they hear a good joke or when they get tickled. But on his third attempt at sleep; Beast Boy suddenly bellowed out a mad sort of crazed laugh that was so loud, he had to cover his face with a pillow to muffle out the noise.

After failing to sleep soundly on his fourth attempt, he finally gave up and curled himself into a fetal position. "I...I c-c-ca-HA-HA-HA-an't take it anymore" he cackled painfully, "I've...I've...HA-HA-HA-HA...gotta d-d-do something to...m-m-make it s-s-stop!" As Beast Boy rocked himself back and forth on his bed, he desperately tried to think of some way to cease his mad laughter and feel at peace again.

Alas, the only things that ran through his mind were the sounds of himself screaming from the torture or Joker laughing maliciously at his pain. "Get a hold of yourself, dude" Beast Boy murmured while shaking his head, "maybe...maybe a hot shower will help you relax." With that in mind, he collected his casual clothes and made his way towards the bathroom

After almost an hour of scrubbing, washing and soaking himself; Beast Boy turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. Normally, a warm soak is just the trick to help a person relax. But alas, it did little to help ease his troubled mind.

With trembling hands and a groan in his throat, Beast Boy made his way over towards the mirror to brush his hair. As he swiped his hand across the glass, Beast Boy took a good look at his reflection and frowned. His eyes appeared bloodshot (presumably from lack of sleep or crying,) he had bags hanging beneath them and he swore he spotted what were known as "smile lines" on his cheeks.

Needless to say, he looked like he'd been through Hell and back; which was not too far from the truth. Then, as he stared at his reflection; Beast Boy let out a soft yet sudden chuckle. At first, it didn't seem like nothing; until he let out a few more chuckles.

Before long, Beast Boy soon went into a full fit of painful laughter. Once or twice, he tried to compose himself enough to breathe properly but to no avail. Then, as he slowly began to lose himself to the laughter; Beast Boy saw that his reflection now resembled his "Lil J" likeness.

This sight horrified him so much, he smashed his fist against the glass; shattering it. Yet, in spite of the pain throbbing through his hand; poor Beast Boy continued to laugh like a madman. His madness only grew higher, as he gazed down at his reflection on each of the shattered glass pieces.

"I c-c-can't...I c-ca-HA-HA-HA...can't take it...anymore" he groaned through his laughter, "I've gotta make this stop!" In that moment, Beast Boy tried any conceivable option he could think of to stop himself from laughing. He tried splashing himself with the hot shower water, breathing exercises (like Raven taught him) even went as far as to punch himself in the face...but nothing worked.

When Beast Boy took another look at what remained of the mirror, he still saw the face of Lil' J staring back at him. To make matters worse; when he laughed, it now sounded more like Joker's iconic cackle. As he stood staring blankly at his reflection, tears of sorrow began to trickle down Beast Boy's cheeks.

_"I can't stand it anymore" _he cried mentally while still outwardly cackling, _"this has to stop!"_ With this thought in mind, Beast Boy began to desperately search around the bathroom for anything that could help him calm down...but found nothing. In time, his eyes soon fell upon a large piece of mirror glass lying on the floor rug.

The sight of this object caused a Cheshire-Cat grin to slowly form upon his face, in spite the tears still flowing from his eyes.

(Line Break)

Deep in the tower's lower levels, the T-Car came rolling into the basement garage. Once it was neatly parked away, Cyborg and Robin stepped out of the vehicle, each carrying a stack of three pizza boxes. "I still think we bought one too many pizzas, Cyborg" Robin said firmly, "you and Star may be big eaters...but the rest of us aren't."

While holding his stack carefully, the metal teen faced his leader and said he "couldn't be too careful with everyone's orders." "You know how picky BB is" he stated, "not to mention that Star's the only one of us who eats chocolate dipped mustard pizza." Robin couldn't help but shudder in disgust at the pizza order, wondering how his girlfriend/teammate could stomach such odd concoctions.

"Besides; none of it will go to waste, if we don't eat it all" Cyborg assured, "I'll eat the leftovers myself." Just as Robin was about to lecture his teammate on his eating habits, Starfire suddenly burst through the door (quite literally.) Naturally, the boys were taken aback by this and tossed their pizza boxes into the air.

Thankfully, Star was able to catch them all and place them safely onto the ground; before continuing. "FRIENDS, YOU MUST COME WITH ME UPSTAIRS" she begged, "SOMETHING TERRIBLE HAS HAPPENED!" Feeling both confused yet concerned at the same time, Robin asked her what happened while they were away.

"We cannot waste time talking, my friends" Starfire said frantically, "something heinous has happened to friend Beast Boy in the resting room!" After about ten seconds, the boys quickly realized that their friend was referring to the tower's bathroom. Then; when they put the words "Beast Boy," "bathroom" and "trouble" together in the same sentence; they couldn't help but roll their eyes slightly.

"What happened, Star; did B put hide a Cherry Bomb in the toilet" groaned Cyborg, "because if he did, _he's_ the one paying for the repair bills!" Robin quickly seconded his friend's notion, while also adding his disdain for Beast Boy's bathroom pranks. "THIS IS NOT A PRANK, FOR X'HAL'S SAKE" Starfire shrieked, "OUR FRIEND IS IN A MOST DIRE STATE AND WE MUST HELP HIM!"

Before either of the boys had the chance to speak up, the Tamaranean princess grabbed them both by their arms and flew them up the stairs at lightning speed. When they arrived at the bathroom door, Robin swore he could hear the sounds of someone weeping inside. _"That sounds like Raven crying in there"_ Robin thought to himself, _"if his stupid prank hurt her in any way, I'm going too..."_

With this notion in mind, the Boy Wonder reared himself back slightly and delivered a powerful kick to the bathroom door; knocking it open. What he and the others saw next however, would cause them to immediately regret their impatience. Lying sprawl in the bathtub with Raven crying at the side was Beast Boy, who bore a large bleeding slash across his throat.

A split second later, Robin also noticed that the bathroom mirror had been smashed; along with a blood-covered shard of it resting by Raven's feet. Both he and Cyborg simply stared down at their green comrade, utterly baffled by what they saw. "What the...WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED HERE" demanded the robo-teen, "what kind of prank did B pull that would make you want to do this, Rave!?"

Feeling both shocked and offended by these accusations, the empath told everyone that she had no part in what happened. "I was just coming in to wash my hands for dinner" she croaked out while crying, "and when I came in, I just found Beast Boy lying here with his throat bleeding!" Before anyone else could speak, a soft yet painful cough suddenly rang out.

The other Titans looked down and saw Beast Boy breathing weakly in the tub. "B...dude, of all the stuff you did; this has to be among the dumbest ones" Cyborg murmured while shaking his head, "why the hell would you do this to yourself?" In spite of his pain, Beast Boy still managed to shed a few tears; as if he was feeling equally ashamed of his actions.

"I'm s-s-sorry, guys" he croaked out, "I c-c-couldn't help it, I just had to...had to make...the laughing...stop." With that final word; everyone watched in horror, as their friend and comrade closed his eyes forever.

(Back to Reality)

Back in the briefing room, everything was as silent as the grave. The Titans, after having finished their story, spent the next five minutes drying away their tears. At the same time; Commissioner Gordon came close to breaking the pencil he was currently writing notes with, he was so furious.

"Damn that fucking clown" he grumbled, "even after the kid killed him; in the end, he still managed to get the last laugh on you Titans." As much as they hated to admit it, Gordon's words rung true. They had never suffered a tragedy this terrible since Terra's sacrifice, ages ago.

Only _this _time, they felt even more emotionally devastated because BB was like the heart of their team. With him gone, not one of them believed they could recover. "I shouldn't have sent him off on his own" grumbled Robin, "if me or Cyborg...or even Raven teamed up with him for patrol, he'd still be here!"

Upon seeing his former protégé's grim demeanor, Batman did something he hardly ever did (least of all, in public.) He rose up from his seat, cautiously approached Robin from the front...and hugged him. Mind you, it wasn't a full one or anything like one of Star's bone-crushing embraces.

Rather, this was the sort of hug that one would give a friend or loved one; as if to say "don't be sad." "What happened to Beast Boy wasn't your fault, Dick" Batman stated, "no one could've known where Joker would strike or who would get caught in his crosshairs." In spite of the apparent truth in his former mentor's words, Robin still upheld his self-loathing behavior.

"But I'm the leader" he shouted, "no one is supposed to get hurt on my watch!" Batman shook his head at Robin and reminded him that high stakes were always part of hero life. "As for psychological damage...I'm afraid there is nothing that can be done to fully fix it" Commissioner Gordon added, "at least, you were able to help make his final moments meaningful."

Despite the genuine kindness in the two gentlemen's words, it did little to help ease Robin's guilt. Nor unfortunately, were they able to help lift the spirits of the other Titans. At the very least, all their emotional baggage was now laid out on the table; which meant that none of them would be held down by it from then on...hopefully.

"Well...if we're all done here, we best be going" Robin murmured, "we've got some calls to make, when we get back home." It didn't take someone with Batman's detective skills to understand why such calls were necessary but neither he nor Gordon said anything. Instead, they offered to give them an escort back home and help spread the word on their upcoming "get-together."

"Thank you...Thank you so much, Sirs" murmured Raven with a soft grin, "for both the escort thing, listening to us prattle on with our story and...everything else." Batman gave the young empath a genuine smile and nodded in response, as if to tell her "you're very welcome." With all that said and done, everyone stood up from their chairs and headed out towards the GCPD's main exit.

Now that their story was over, all the Titans had left to do was pick up the pieces of their broken hearts and prepare their final goodbyes.

(First AN: And so, our favorite green teen's suffering has come to an end. Hopefully, he will be more at peace in the next life. Now, all that remains is to prepare for the funeral; something that even Raven wouldn't want to see.

There is one chapter left, everyone and once it's over; we can finally let loose our tears. See you then)

(Second AN: Sorry if Beast Boy slitting his throat or his descent into madness seemed off to you all. I'm no expert on suffering psychological trauma, truth be told. But regardless, I wanted to try and make Beast Boy's situation all the more distressful as best as I could.

For example; I got the idea of Beast Boy suffering with the Pseudobulbar Affect/Pathological Laughing Disorder from the film, Joker. After seeing how much Joaquin Phoenix's character of Arthur Fleck suffered from _his _variation of the disorder, I thought it would fit perfectly if Beast Boy suffered the same thing; especially after what Joker did to him)

(Third AN: In regards to Elasti-Girl gaining ownership of Mento's helmet, Dayton Manor/the Doom Patrol Mansion and half of the money from Mento's company; considering what he did to her in canon with the comics, it's more than what that jerk deserved. For those of you who may seem confused; long story short, Steve Dayton used the powers from his helmet to manipulate Rita/Elasti-Girl into loving him.

When she broke free, Rita cut him out of her life like a bad habit. Furthermore, all the tragedies listed in this chapter that BB suffered are also canon within the DC universe. For clarification, I suggest reading up on the comics themselves or look up the info on Wikipedia)

(Final AN: Sorry if this chapter's title felt like I was simply copying and pasting it with the fic's title. I thought it would be a fitting one, in an ironic sense. What I mean is not only did Beast Boy have his own last laugh, before passing away.

But I like to think of this as Joker getting the last laugh as well, in a way. Even though the Titans "saved" their friend, what the clown did to BB was so scarring that hardly anyone could recover; hence the title "The Last Laugh")


	9. Epilogue: A Hero's Farewell

A Hero's Farewell

Over the next few days, a heavy cloud of sorrow seemed to loom over Jump City. After leaving Gotham, the Titans spent much of the remaining week preparing for something they never thought they'd put together, a funeral...Beast Boy's funeral. After Terra's sacrifice during her battle against Slade, the Titans hoped...they prayed that they would never have to witness such a tragedy again.

But Raven knew, Fate was often never fair towards others; especially when it came to the deaths of loved ones. In time, Robin sent out word of the upcoming event to every teen hero across the globe, Titan or otherwise. Many were understandably shocked by this, others believed it was all a lie; a sort of prank Beast Boy was setting up.

But in spite of however uncomfortable everyone felt about the matter, despite the sadness gripping at their hearts; the Titans knew their friend had to be put to rest. After putting in a call to the Justice League, Batman (while under the guise of Bruce Wayne) helped set up a service for Beast Boy and vowed that he would attend. But instead of having him be buried at the Jump City cemetery, Raven suggested another idea.

With a heavy heart, she asked if they could bury Beast Boy in the jungles of Africa where he grew up. Though her team thought it was unusual, at first; they knew that there was no place else more deserving for him to be put to rest. Some time after this decision was made, Robin began making calls to the city officials and all their colleagues within both the Titans and the Justice League.

At first, the news about Beast Boy's death was met with a little skepticism; many believing that it may be a sort of "twisted prank" he might be pulling. But after hearing from Batman for themselves what Beast Boy had endured and learning about the after effects from it, the truth finally hit them; he was truly gone.

(Line Break)

Weeks later, all sorts of ships and aircraft could be seen flying over a majestic jungle below them. Among these ships were both factions of the Titans' T-Ships, the Young Justice team's bio-ship, Batman's plane and others. After flying over the mysterious jungle for quite a few minutes, they all landed safely upon a patch of grass as best as each of them could.

As the heroes started leaving each of their respective vessels, they were immediately greeted by a group of tribal people. Among them was a middle-aged fellow dressed in orange robes; he sported a large gold necklace and on his head was what looked like a ceremonial headdress. At first, the heroes felt mildly apprehensive; thinking that this man and his people wanted to drive them all away.

But then, the leader looked upon them all and said only five words, "please...let me see him." For a moment, the Titans were prepared to ask who the "him" was that this fellow appeared so desperate to see. But then, Batman arrived and decided to help explain things for them.

"Titans, meet King Tawaba" he murmured, "he and his tribe were good friends of Beast Boy's parents, after his father helped heal his infected leg." To say that Robin and the team were shocked by this reveal would be putting it mildly. Yet again, they were surprised to hear another part of Beast Boy's life they seldom knew about and now, they've lost any chance to truly learn more about him.

Regardless, they still did the respectable thing and greeted the king accordingly. But once again, Tawaba only said the words "let me see him" to the young heroes. Rather than wait for the Titans' approval, the king's warriors slightly pushed them aside; allowing him to make his way onto the Titans West T-Ship.

When he saw the motionless form of Garfield Logan before him, he bellowed out such an anguished way that it caused several animals to bolt away. In time, the Young Justice heroes rushed to his side; hoping Tawaba was alright. "Your Highness, are you okay" questioned M'Gann M'orzz/Miss Martian, "we heard you scre..."

Before she could finish her sentence, the young Martian took a look at the body resting before Tawaba and squealed in horror. From the twisted grin upon his face to the large gash across his throat, this did not resemble the sweet boy she called "baby brother." With trembling hands and tears welling up in her eyes, M'Gann reached over and caressed Beast Boy's cheek lightly.

In that moment, she wanted nothing more than to just hold him close and release all her sorrow. But she restrained herself, surprisingly enough; not wishing to discourage those around her. That was when she felt Tawaba's hand rest lightly her own upon Gar's face.

"There is no shame in weeping, child of the stars" the king murmured sadly, "Master Logan was my family as well...and this loss weighs just as heavily upon me." No sooner had he said this, Tawaba closed his eyes and tears began to trickle lightly down his slightly wrinkled cheeks. Upon seeing this, M'Gann was finally able to let go and allow her own tears to flow freely.

_"Goodbye, Gar-Gar" _she thought sorrowfully, _"say hi to your parents up there for me...okay?"_ After a while, Miss Martian moved away from Gar's corpse and flung herself into the arms of Superboy/Connor Kent; her teammate and boyfriend. Though he didn't get to know Beast Boy as well as M'Gann did, he knew the lil' guy was still special to her and it hurt him to see her so distressed.

At that moment; Kaldur'ahm/Kaldur, leader of the Young Justice Titans and a soldier of Atlantis, politely urged his two friends to follow him. "Allow King Tawaba a moment more to grieve" he said sullenly, "then...we must do what must be done." M'Gann and Connor nodded in understanding, said their goodbyes to Gar one final time and left the T-Ship; leaving King Tawaba behind with his charge.

After what felt like ages, his soldiers politely urged Tawaba to follow them back outside and allow the Titans to bring Garfield's body to the burial site. Though it pained him to do so, the king knew they were right and answered their request. Before departing, he took hold of his tribal staff and waved it lightly over Beast Boy's body.

While performing this gesture, Tawaba recited a brief prayer unto him in native Swahili; _"__kupumzika rahisi, mtoto; mizimu itakuongoza kwa usalama kwa wazazi wako katika maisha ijayo.__"_ Afterwards, he followed his warriors out of the ship; leaving only the West Titans behind. "Friends...do any of you know what the king said to Beast Boy" questioned Starfire, "it all sounded...quite sad."

Almost immediately, Raven admitted that though she only knew a little Swahili; Tawaba sounded like he wished for Garfield's spirit to have a "safe voyage" into the next life. Truthfully, Star couldn't make heads or tails of the statement but it still sounded mildly comforting. "Come on, Titans" Robin murmured, "let's take our friend home."

(Line Break)

In time, everyone was gathered together at what looked like an old house. At first, some believed it was a dilapidated tribal home of some kind. But then, Tawaba explained that the building was actually Beast Boy's childhood home and where his parents spent their researching days.

"There's no better place than this for the kid to rest at, in my opinion" murmured Robotman, "well...let's do this already." With that said, he walked over and joined Cyborg in lifting up a casket off the ground. Then, Kid Flash used his speed to help dig up a hole near the house.

After this, the casket was placed inside of the hole; ready to be buried. But before that; everyone watched as Superman stood before them, moments away from giving his eulogy. "We are gathered her today...to bid farewell to one, Garfield Mark Logan; known to many as Beast Boy" he said sullenly, "who was taken from the world far too soon."

Though he hated to do so, especially after seeing how much his words were hurting everyone; Superman knew he had to keep going. "Though only some of us know him, Beast Boy's passing still affects us all" he murmured, "and to those who took him from us...know that the foulest pits of Hell now await you, ready to punish you for your actions." The moment this was said, Cyborg suddenly shot up from his seat and began roaring loudly with rage.

"I HOPE YOU'RE BURNING DOWN THERE, YOU ROTTEN CLOWN" he shouted loudly at the ground, "YOU EVIL PIECE OF SHIT...I HOPE YOU BURN DOWN THERE!" With all the restraint they could muster, Raven and Starfire did their best to calm their grieving friend. Though, at the same time; they couldn't help but empathize with him.

After Superman gave a few more comforting words, the floor was then offered to Robin; who appeared to be maskless (much to everyone's surprise.) "Since our team first formed; the team and...even myself at times called Beast Boy reckless, bothersome and proclaimed that his jokes were beyond cringe-worthy" he said with a light grimace towards the final words, "now, after everything that's happened...we'd give _anything_ to hear him say one of those jokes right now." There was a light ironic chuckle from the crowd, which provided a brief yet welcomed relief from the sadness they all felt.

"If there was anything remotely positive my team and I gained from our encounter with Joker, it's this" he stated, "we got to learn what Beast Boy was really like." From here; he went on to explain how, thanks to some knowledge provided by Dr. Caulder, the team learned that the Beast Boy they knew was a sort of..."illusion" of sorts. "After all the tragedies he endured in life, including this one, Beast Boy he never wished to experience such sorrow again" Robin said while choking back a sob, "he wanted to lift the spirits of everyone around him...even himself."

This statement caused quite a few of the Titans to weep, many who once considered BB's aforementioned antics stressful. "He especially wanted my team and I to feel happier, whenever life got us down" Robin mumbled, "I just wish we appreciated it more, now." That did it, that last statement was enough to break Robin's walls down.

After covering his eyes over with his arm, the former Boy Wonder decreed that he couldn't continue anymore and asked to be dismissed. When the time came for the Doom Patrol to speak, they didn't fare much better. In the end, Rita managed to summon just enough willpower to give her speech.

"After my the accident that gave me my powers; I was told that while I may have survived, I would never...never be able to have children" she said with a soft whimper near the end, "but then, Garfield came into my life and I swore to look after him no matter what." Rita then briefly went into detail on hers and Beast Boy's life together, after this. She spoke about how she helped properly encourage him during training, how he came to her whenever Mento gave him a vicious scolding and all the times she would read The Frog Prince to him (his favorite book.)

"On one or two of those occasions, Gar would turn into a frog and look up at me with pleading eyes; silently asking me to kiss him" Rita said with a light giggle, "the first time I did it was on his birthday." The crowd couldn't help but murmur out a soft "aww" in response to this adorable tale. The Titans themselves thought it was especially touching, some of them proclaiming he was lucky to have such moments in life.

But then, in the blink of an eye; Rita's pleasant demeanor completely gave way to sorrow. "And then. he was taken away from me not once...but twice" she choked out sadly, "I couldn't stop Mento from kicking him off the team...so, I wanted to try and save him _this _time...and I _FAILED!_" The moment she said this, Rita's tears came pouring out like geysers.

As a pair of pallbearers tried to help escort her back to her seat, everyone could now hear Rita wailing "I failed my baby" over and over under her breath. Once she was sat down, Robotman took his place at the podium and tried his best to come up with his own speech. When he finally found what he felt were the right words, he gave a light cough (despite not having lungs) and began.

"Back in the day, there were times where the lil' green bean used to drive me off the wall" murmured Robotman, "from his weird questions on 'who built me' right up to the one time where he actually managed to take me apart." This statement caused everyone to gasp, only for them to break out into light laughter after that. There were a few, however who wondered how Beast Boy was able to achieve this; considering his lack of construction/mechanic skills.

After a while, the atmosphere calmed down a little and Robotman resumed speaking. "As I said, the squirt knew just how to push my buttons; both figuratively _and_ literally" he stated, "but...I couldn't help but love the little man in spite of all that." After this, he mentioned all the times he helped stand up for Beast Boy whenever Mento scolded him; much like Elasti-Girl.

"True, the kid's curiosities often got the better of him; on occasion" Robotman murmured, "but then again, when hasn't that happened with any of us?" The most heartwarming part of his speech came when Robotman mentioned how Gar never looked down on him or any of the team for how they looked. "Most people treated us like freaks, after our accidents" he said with a grimace, "but not Gar...he actually thought our powers were cool."

Before he said his final words, Robotman approached the side of Gar's open casket and patted the boy's hand lightly with his large one. "Goodbye, Gar" he whispered, "thanks for bein' such a good kid...we'll never...never forget you." After this, he stormed his way back to his seat; making sure nobody would see him cry.

When Negative Man came up to speak, his words were brief yet full of heart. "The lil' guy was always so accepting towards people, no matter what they were like" he began, "some of you know what I'm talkin' about...am I right?" There was a light murmur of agreement from the crowd before the hero decided to continue.

"He didn't care about my bandages, my weird powers...or even the fact that I'm gay" he stated, "he saw me as his friend and surrogate uncle...and it all meant the world to me." After taking a moment to let Negative Man's little bombshell sink in, everyone silently praised the fallen teen for his big heart...well, almost everyone. Before Negative Man could finish the remainder of his speech, Raven suddenly screamed in agony and stormed through the crowd.

"STOOOOOP" she cried in anguish while throwing herself onto Beast Boy's casket, "I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE, JUST...just bury me with him!" For a moment or two, everyone sounded off in outrage; proclaiming that the empath was making a scene and disturbing the funeral. But the Titans wished to be fair and questioned her on why she was acting like this.

"I just...I don't want him to leave me again" Raven wailed, "I loved him, alright...he was the only guy to ever want to get close to me and all I did was shoot him down." From her, she mentioned all the things she found the most appealing about Beast Boy; from his pointed ears right down to his voice. "I'll never forget how he smiled at me, after I inadvertently said he was funny and I saw the love in his eyes."

Upon hearing the "L" word, everyone suddenly gasped in shock. "Rave...are you sayin' what I think you're sayin'" inquired Cyborg, "did you have a thing for B?" At first, Raven hesitated; wishing to keep up her usual deadpan demeanor for a bit longer. But overtime, everyone could plainly see the blush developing upon her cheeks.

Once she took notice of this, Raven heaved out a dejected sigh and decided to come clean. "I _did_ love him...it's true" she murmured, "and now...and now...I'll never get the chance to tell him!" Once this was said, Raven threw herself back onto the coffin and openly sobbed atop Beast Boy's chest. For a while, the Justice League allowed her to unleash all this pent up anguish.

But then, the time came for the coffin to be lowered in and buried. "I know you don't want to say goodbye, dear" Rita murmured while stroking Raven's back tenderly, "but...I have a suspicion that he may already know how you feel. At first, Raven wanted to offer up some kind of retort.

But due to her current state, she couldn't think of anything more than a simple yet sad "whatever." After giving Raven a tender hug, Rita helped lead her back to her seat; allowing the funeral precession to lower the casket down. "Farewell, Master Logan" Tawaba decreed loudly, "may the spirits guide you home."

With that, the casket had reached the bottom of the hole and everyone began shoveling the dirt onto it. But before it got too coated, Raven wished to offer up one last thing to her fallen friend and crush; a white rose from one of the bouquets. She gently plucked it out of the vase, kissed the blossom and tossed it onto Gar's casket down below.

(Line Break)

An hour or so after the funeral, everyone had left the area; save for the Titans. While the rest of the team was busy prepping the ship, Raven remained standing at the burial site; staring down at the dirt pile before her. While the funeral service was beautiful and everyone had extended some truly loving final words, Raven still felt something was missing.

Then, as she looked around the area; she spotted a sort of flat rock and got an idea. Using her powers, she levitated the rock over to the burial and placed near the top end. On it; she wrote with her powers "here lies Garfield Logan, A True Beacon of Light in a Grim World; he will be missed."

Once that was finished, Raven was just about to meet up with her team at the ship. Then, all of a sudden; a light breeze blew by and lightly lifted up Raven's cloak. When she felt the feel of the wind envelop her body, the young empath couldn't help but smile.

Within seconds, Raven knew what this was but decided to keep it to herself...for now. With a light smile upon her face and a tear in her eye, Raven looked up at the sky above her and blew a light kiss farewell. _"Goodbye, Garfield" _she thought while walking towards the team, _"finally...after so much pain, you can be happy again."_

(First AN: And thus; the story has reached its end and our fallen hero has been put to rest, at last. Sorry if this felt shorter than the previous chapters, everyone. But that's the thing about epilogues, they often are pretty brief.

In any case, thanks for sticking with the story all this time, for your reviews, your follows and just spreading word about it. If you've enjoyed this, I recommend looking up my other fanfics as well. Some of them may not be Titans related but they're still good)

(Second AN: While they may not be affiliated with the Titans universe; I felt it necessary to include the likes of Kaldur, M'Gann and Connor among the funeral attendees; considering how M'Gann sees the Young Justice version of Gar her little brother)

(Third AN: I also felt it fitting that Beast Boy not only be buried in Africa but also near his childhood home as well, considering how big of a part of his life that place was)

(Fourth AN: King Tawaba and his tribe are all part of the DC continuity, even though they haven't been mentioned on the show before. They were dear friends of Gar's parents, after Mark Logan helped heal an affliction that the king had and after the Logans died; Tawaba and his queen briefly took him in as their son)

(Fifth AN: Some of the family moments the Doom Patrol mentioned are from the comics, either the original DC continuity, except for Negative Man being homosexual; _that_ was from the DC Universe Online series)

(Sixth AN: The Swahili phrase that Tawaba says to Beast Boy's body translates to "rest easy, child; may the spirits lead you safely to your parents in the next life;" in case anyone felt curious or didn't understand)

(Final AN: Raven's lil' confession about loving Gar may seem sudden to some of you. But bear in mind, she's kept these sort of feelings bottled up since the team first formed. So, after witnessing what she saw; of course Raven would do something like this.

A pity that she made the confession too little too late)


End file.
